Examining the Impact of an Intervention Designed to Improve National Physical Therapy Examination Performance Among Physical Therapist Education Program Graduates.

Introduction: National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) first-time pass rates are trending downward in recent years. As a result, there is a need for programs to identify ways to promote improved NPTE performance among their graduates.

Review Of Literature: Previous studies have identified factors that can be used to predict an individual's chances of passing the NPTE.

The Modified Reactive Strength Index Is a Valid Measure of Lower-Body Explosiveness in Male and Female High School Athletes.

Witte, BC, Schouten, TC, Westphal, JA, VanZile, AW, Jones, DD, Widenhoefer, TL, Dobbs, WC, Jagim, AR, Luedke, JA, and Almonroeder, TG. The modified reactive strength index is a valid measure of lower-body explosiveness in male and female high school athletes. J Strength Cond Res 38(8): 1428-1432, 2024-The modified reactive strength index (mRSI) is a commonly used metric to quantify lower-body explosiveness during countermovement jump (CMJ) performance.

Predicting First-Time National Physical Therapy Examination Performance for Graduates of an Entry-Level Physical Therapist Education Program.

Introduction: The National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) is a standardized examination designed to assess competence after graduation from an entry-level physical therapist education program.

Review Of Literature: Previous studies have identified applicant and student variables that are related to NPTE performance, with applicant variables reflecting performance before admission and student variables reflecting performance after admission. However, there are very few articles describing how these variables can be combined to predict NPTE performance.

Kinetic Asymmetry During a Repetitive Tuck Jump Task in Athletes with a History of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

Background: Athletes who have undergone anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction typically exhibit relatively high/rapid loading of their uninvolved limb during bilateral landing and jumping (vs. their limb that underwent reconstruction), which may place their uninvolved limb at risk for injury. However, previous studies have only examined forces and loading rates for tasks involving an isolated land-and-jump.

The effects of drop vertical jump technique on landing and jumping kinetics and jump performance.

The drop vertical jump is a popular plyometric exercise. Two distinct techniques are commonly used to initiate the drop vertical jump. With the 'step-off' technique, athletes step off a raised platform with their dominant limb, while their non-dominant limb remains on the platform.

Training rugby athletes with an external attentional focus promotes more automatic adaptions in landing forces.

Training to reduce landing forces is a common component of anterior cruciate ligament injury prevention programmes. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of training incorporating instructions promoting an internal versus external attentional focus on landing forces in adolescent rugby athletes. Twenty-two rugby athletes were randomly allocated to groups that received instructions promoting an internal versus an external focus during a two week training programme.

Verbal Instruction Reduces Patellofemoral Joint Loading During Bodyweight Squatting.

Context: The bodyweight squat exercise is a common component for treatment and prevention of patellofemoral pain; however, it can also place a high load on the patellofemoral joint. Restricting anterior motion of the knees relative to the toes during squatting appears to reduce patellofemoral loading. However, exercise professionals typically rely on verbal instructions to alter squat technique.