Medicine and science in sports and exercise
-
Med Sci Sports Exerc · May 2011
Comparative StudyAre women with fibromyalgia less physically active than healthy women?
The primary purpose was to quantify and compare physical activity in fibromyalgia (FM) patients to age-matched healthy controls using both objective and self-report measures. Secondary purposes were to compare self-reported and objective measurement of physical activity and to evaluate the relationship between physical activity and pain and mood. ⋯ This controlled study objectively demonstrates that FM patients are less physically active than healthy controls, thus extending on two earlier investigations that did not show differences in total physical activity levels using wrist-mounted actigraphy methods. Physical activity levels were not predictive of pain in FM but were significantly related to depressed mood. FM patients may also have a greater variability in their manner of self-report than healthy controls. Therefore, physical activity measurement in FM patients should not be limited solely to self-report measures.
-
Med Sci Sports Exerc · Jan 2011
Endoplasmic reticulum stress markers and ubiquitin–proteasome pathway activity in response to a 200-km run.
This study investigated whether a 200-km run modulates signaling pathways implicated in cellular stress in skeletal muscle, with special attention paid to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and to the activation of the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. ⋯ In the skeletal muscle, a 200-km run activates the expression of ubiquitin ligases muscle-specific RING finger 1 and muscle atrophy F-box as well as various cellular stresses, among which are ER stress, oxidative stress, and inflammation. Meanwhile, compensatory mechanisms seem also triggered: the unfolded protein response is up-regulated, and the chymotrypsin-like activity of the proteasome is repressed.
-
Sport concussion represents the majority of brain injuries occurring in the United States with 1.6–3.8 million cases annually. Understanding the biomechanical properties of this injury will support the development of better diagnostics and preventative techniques. ⋯ These threshold values are nearly identical with those reported at the collegiate and professional level. If the Head Impact Telemetry System were implemented for medical use, sideline personnel can expect to diagnose one of every five athletes with a concussion when the impact exceeds these tolerance levels. Why all athletes did not sustain a concussion when the impacts generated variables in excess of our threshold criteria is not entirely clear, although individual differences between participants may play a role. A similar threshold to concussion in adolescent athletes compared with their collegiate and professional counterparts suggests an equal concussion risk at all levels of play.
-
Med Sci Sports Exerc · Jun 2010
Assessment of extravascular lung water and cardiac function in trimix SCUBA diving.
An increasing number of recreational self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) divers use trimix of oxygen, helium, and nitrogen for dives deeper than 60 m of sea water. Although it was seldom linked to the development of pulmonary edema, whether SCUBA diving affects the extravascular lung water (EVLW) accumulation is largely unexplored. ⋯ This is the first report that asymptomatic SCUBA dives are associated with accumulation of EVLW with concomitant increase in PAP, diminished left ventricular contractility, and increased release of NT-proBNP, suggesting a significant cardiopulmonary strain. EVLW and PAP did not return to baseline during repetitive dives, indicating possible cumulative effect with increasing the risk for pulmonary edema.