Research in Sports Medicine最新文献

Aim of this prospective cohort study was to assess the value of MRI findings as a return to play (RTP) criterion in relation of safety to achieve pre-injury running performance in the initial days after RTP. All acute non-contact muscle injuries sustained by first-team and farm-team football players of a leading country club from January 2023 to December 2024 were analysed. The rehabilitation was performed according to the control chaos continuum framework. A total of 69 acute primary non-contact muscle injuries occurred during the study period. In twelve cases, MRI was performed both immediately after injury and after RTP (control MRI). The Players returning to play after 29 ± 15.53 days. Control MRI showed that while the degree of injury remained unchanged, the volume of the oedema had decreased (p < 0.001). Peak speed, deceleration, and acceleration intensity were comparable to pre-injury levels post-RTP (p = 0.237, p = 0.184, and p = 0.398, respectively). MRI changes persist after RTP seeming not to impair the ability to perform sport-specific activities at pre-injury levels, nor did they increase the risk of injury recurrence in the participants of this study.

Winged scapula (WS) is characterized by the medial and/or inferior border of the scapula protruding from the thoracic wall. The aetiologies include sports activities, trauma, surgical complications, infections and muscular dystrophies. In our study, we aim to describe the electrophysiological and clinical features of patients referred to our clinic with a preliminary diagnosis of winged scapula and to identify the causes of WS. Between 2009 and 2021, a retrospective analysis was performed of the neurophysiological studies and clinical data of patients who presented with a preliminary diagnosis of winged scapula, long thoracic nerve and/or accessory nerve lesions. Of the 81 patients examined, 27 were found to have nerve damage. A retrospective review of the medical history of these 27 patients revealed that 37% (11 patients) had sports-related injuries as the cause of scapular winging. In addition, scapular winging was found in 4% (1 patient) due to heavy lifting without regular sport activity. We found that 80% of patients with sports-related injuries had a history of weightlifting. This study presents a relatively large number of patients with winged scapula. It was found that weightlifting and bodybuilding in particular play a significant role in the aetiology of WS.

Overhead throwing athletes experience high injury rates throughout the body. While previous studies have focused on risk factors and injury prevention strategies, few have explored the potential of neurophysiological markers like pressure pain threshold (PPT) to guide return-to-throwing decisions. This study aims to investigate the utility of physical performance tests and PPT changes after spinal thrust manipulation (STM) as biomarkers to predict performance and reduce injury risk in overhead throwing athletes. Baseball pitchers were recruited through convenience sampling at an NCAA Division II university. Participants were randomly allocated to STM or sham over a 1-2-week washout period. Performance and clinical measures were performed following interventions in both conditions. Medicine ball scoop test distance emerged as the strongest predictor of throwing velocity (R = 0.713, R² = 0.509, p =  <0.001). Combining MB distance with STM-induced change in PPT further improved the model's predictive power (R = 0.794, R² = 0.630, p =  <0.001). Medicine ball scoop test is a potential tool for evaluating throwing velocity capacity and informing return-to-throwing decisions. STM-induced changes in PPT may be a novel biomarker for identifying pitchers with greater neurophysiological modulation and potential for higher performance.

The adverse consequences of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries on athlete performance and recovery time have made them a major issue in sports medicine. In fact, women's ACL injury rates have remained unchanged for more than 20 years, and they are 3-6 times more likely to get an injury than males. Although a large body of research has examined biomechanical risk factors (e.g. incorrect knee alignment or joint stress during sports activities), very little has been done to explicitly link these biomechanical insights to neuromuscular training regimens. For athletes who run the risk of suffering an ACL injury, proper prophylaxis and prevention are essential, especially for non-contact injuries. A thorough knowledge of the processes, risk factors, and aetiological factors behind sports injuries is necessary for adequate prevention. This paper aims to present a thorough overview of ACL, emphasizing the role of biomechanics in ACL and neuromuscular training programmes.

The primary objective of this pilot study was to assess the impact of consuming hydrogen-rich water (HRW) for a duration of six weeks on exercise-related biomarkers in previously untrained men and women aged over 50 years, subsequent to a resistance training program. Twenty-seven apparently healthy middle-aged adults (age 57.6 ± 6.7 years; 18 females) voluntarily provided written consent to participate in this randomized, placebo-controlled experimental trial. All participants were allocated in a double-blind parallel-group design to receive either HRW (12 mg of dihydrogen per serving) or control water (<0.1 ppm of dihydrogen) administered two times per day during a 6-week intervention interval. Muscle performance indices showed a significant improvement following both HRW and control water interventions compared to the baseline values (p ≤ 0.05). HRW led to a significant increase in serum free testosterone and cortisol levels, along with reductions in total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels at the follow-up (p ≤ 0.05). Moreover, HRW significantly outperformed the control water in reducing biomarkers of acute muscular damage caused by resistance exercise (p ≤ 0.05) and tended to outcompete placebo in improving sleep quality (p = 0.119). HRW could be advanced as a risk-free and effective beverage for promoting training-specific adaptations in exercise-naïve men and women over 50 years of age.

Infrared thermography is increasingly adopted for pre-diagnosis and monitoring of different conditions. Knee osteoarthritis is widely studied and this pathology is often associated with obesity. Body fat is a confounding factor in the thermal imagine evaluation. Consequently, this study correlated the body fat percentage evaluated with the bioelectrical impedance analysis and thermal imagine of the knee region. Healthy young adults were recruited. The skin knee temperature and the bioelectrical impedance analysis were collected. A linear regression analysis was performed between the basal skin temperature of the knee region and weight, total fat percentage, right-leg and left-leg fat percentage. No associations were detected with weight, total fat percentage, and legs fat percentage. In the knee, in which the fat percentage is generally low, the fat percentage could be secondary in influencing the evaluation. This seems to make obesity not a limit during the skin thermal evaluation of the knee region.

Collegiate wrestling presents a higher risk of concussion than American football. However, there is limited research on repetitive head impact exposure in wrestling, and how it compares to football is unknown. Therefore, this study explores repetitive head impacts in Division 1 collegiate wrestlers (n = 11, age = 20 ± 2 years, 125-285 lbs) during the 2019-2020 wrestling season. Using an instrumented mouthguard, we examined impact numbers and head kinematics, including linear acceleration, angular velocity, and angular acceleration. Of the 246 true positive impacts identified, 60% were head-to-body, 30.1% head-to-head, and 9.9% head-to-ground. Although head-to-ground impacts demonstrated higher magnitudes, differences were not significant. The median PLA was 39.89 g, which is higher than previous reports of head impacts in football. This study provides insights for future wrestling research and the development of safety interventions, such as protective headgear or specialized training exercises, to reduce risks of brain trauma for wrestlers.

Lateral ankle sprains in martial arts athletes frequently leave persistent proprioceptive and neuromuscular deficits. This prospective cohort study evaluated whether adding low-frequency electrical stimulation (LFES) to proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) augments recovery. Five hundred sixty athletes with grade I-II sprains (mean age 22.6 ± 2.7 years) were stratified to LFES + PNF (n=280) or proprioception-only (n=280) for 12 weeks, with assessments at baseline and Weeks 2, 6, and 12. Outcomes included pain (VAS), pressure pain threshold (PPT), ankle range of motion (ROM), joint position sense (JPS), surface EMG, somatosensory evoked potentials (SEP), electromechanical delay (EMD), Functional Movement Screen (FMS), and dynamic balance. Mixed ANOVA/ANCOVA with effect sizes and nonparametric validation (Friedman/Wilcoxon) were applied. Compared with proprioception-only, LFES produced greater pain reduction (VAS -5.0 vs -4.1; p<0.001), higher PPT (+1.6 kg/cm²), and larger ROM gains (+9.2° dorsiflexion; +6.4° plantarflexion). JPS error decreased by -3.5°, with 78% achieving ≤3° accuracy. EMG latency decreased by 7.8 ms and amplitude increased by 17.2 µV; SEP latency normalized in 78% with amplitudes reaching 4.1 µV. EMD improved by -19.7 ms (p=0.001), FMS increased by +2.9 points, and composite recovery criteria were met more often with LFES (51% vs 28%; p<0.001). No serious adverse events occurred. These findings indicate that LFES adjunct to proprioceptive training accelerates sensorimotor recovery and enhances functional outcomes after lateral ankle sprain in martial arts athletes.

The study evaluated the effectiveness of different rehabilitation methods for young volleyball players aged 15-20 following knee arthroscopy for internal meniscus repair. The study, conducted in Moscow from March to September 2025, included 20 participants who were divided into two groups: one group received standard physiotherapy and exercise (Group A), and the other group received the same treatment plus massage therapy (Group B). Assessments were conducted three to four weeks post-surgery, focusing on knee flexion, extension, and pain levels measured using the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS). Significant differences were observed in knee extension as well, with Group A improving from 20 to 39 degrees, while Group B increased from 30 to 42 degrees. The results indicated P-values of 0.03 for flexion and 0.02 for extension, indicating the positive impact of incorporating massage therapy in the rehabilitation programme. The results also demonstrated a significant difference in pain intensity between the two groups (p = 0.01), highlighting the effectiveness of incorporating massage therapy in reducing early post-operative pain in young volleyball players following meniscus suture repair. Overall, the study revealed the importance of comprehensive rehabilitation strategies for enhancing recovery in young athletes post-surgery.

We aimed to systematically assess the prognosis of Effect of Neuromuscular training on female athletes with Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries by System evaluation and meta-analysis. Among these, 7 articles were selected for inclusion in the review, consisting of 5 retrospective case series (RCS) and 2 prospective case series (PCS). In comparison to the control group, neuromuscular training reduced ACL injury odds (OR 0.81, 95% CI 0.70-0.94). A significant improvement in effectiveness was also noted in the incidence rate of Hip and Thigh injuries when compared to the control group (odds ratio =0.75, 95%CI:0.57-0.99, P=0.04). Furthermore, a substantial enhancement in effectiveness was observed in the occurrence of knee injuries among female athletes compared to the control group (odds ratio =0.53, 95%CI: 0.30-0.93, P=0.03). In conclusion, neuromuscular training significantly reduced the occurrence of total ACL injuries, Hip and Thigh injuries, and knee injuries in female athletes.