The roles of lumbar load thresholds in cumulative lifting exposure to predict disk protrusion in an Asian population.

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine whether a specific threshold per lifting movement, the accumulation above which best predicts lumbar disk protrusion, exists or the total lifting load should be considered.

Methods: This was a retrospective study. Subjects with various lifting exposures were recruited.

Morphomechanical alterations in the medial gastrocnemius muscle in patients with a repaired Achilles tendon: Associations with outcome measures.

Background: Functional deficits are found in ankles that have sustained an Achilles rupture. This study sought to evaluate and compare the morphomechanical characteristics of the medial gastrocnemius muscle in the legs of participants within six months of a unilateral Achilles repair to determine any correlations between those characteristics and objective outcomes and self-reported functional levels.

Methods: Fifteen participants were assessed via measurements of muscle morphologies (fascicle length, pennation angle, and muscle thickness) in a resting state, the mechanical properties of the proximal aponeurosis of the medial gastrocnemius muscle, the pennation angle during ramping maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC), the heel raise test, and the Taiwan Chinese version of the Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS-TC) questionnaire.

The dose-response relationship between cumulative lifting load and lumbar disk degeneration based on magnetic resonance imaging findings.

Background: Lumbar disk degeneration (LDD) has been related to heavy physical loading. However, the quantification of the exposure has been controversial, and the dose-response relationship with the LDD has not been established.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the dose-response relationship between lifetime cumulative lifting load and LDD.