Measurement of Children's Real-Time Physical Activity Enjoyment Using a New Visual Analog Scale.

Background: This study validated the How(e) Happy Scale (HHS) for measuring children's real-time physical activity (PA) enjoyment across PA type, intensity, sex, and weight status and compared state versus trait enjoyment. Methods: Children's (N = 31; 9.7 [1.7] y) PA intensity was measured during sport, play, and locomotive PA. Following each activity, children rated their perceived state (HHS) of enjoyment across 4 constructs (social engagement). Questionnaires measured trait PA enjoyment prior to play. Rasch Rating Scale analysis assessed model-data fit and probability distribution of HHS responses. Analyses of variance compared state versus trait PA enjoyment across main effects, and correlations assessed relationships between measured PA intensity versus state and trait PA enjoyment. Results: Trait PA enjoyment was neither different across sex and weight status nor correlated with PA intensity (r = -.16 to .22). By contrast, HHS responses differed across sex, weight status, and PA type and intensity and correlated with PA type (r = -.56 to -.28) and intensity (r = -.29 to -.32). HHS responses were ordered along the probability curve and showed good infit (0.76-1.22) and outfit (0.71-1.28) statistics and good person (r = .62) and item (r = .88) reliability. Conclusion: HHS is valid for detecting differences in real-time enjoyment across PA type and intensity in all children.

Postural Stability Assessment of University Marching Musicians Using Force Platform Measures.

Lower extremity injury is prevalent in marching musicians, and poor postural stability is a possible risk factor for this. The external load of an instrument may predispose these performers to injury by decreasing postural stability. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between instrument load and static and dynamic postural stability in this population. Fourteen university marching musicians were recruited and completed a balance assessment protocol on a force platform with and without their instrument. Mean center of pressure (CoP) displacement was then calculated for each exercise in the anterior/posterior and medial/lateral planes. Mean anterior/posterior CoP displacement significantly increased in the instrument condition for the static surface, eyes closed, 2 feet condition (p≤0.005; d=0.89). No significant differences were found in the medial/lateral plane between non-instrument and instrument conditions. Significant differences were not found between test stance conditions independent of group. Comparisons between the non-instrument-loaded and instrument-loaded conditions revealed possible significance of instrument load on postural stability in the anterior/posterior plane. Mean differences indicated that an unstable surface created a greater destabilizing effect on postural stability than instrument load.

Objective functional assessment after a head injury using movement and activity in physical space scores: a case report.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the potential benefit of using a global positioning system (GPS) and accelerometry as an objective functional-activity measure after concussion by creating Movement and Activity in Physical Space (MAPS) scores. BACKGROUND: A 21-year-old female soccer player suffered a blow to the back of the head from an opponent's shoulder during an away match. No athletic trainer was present. She played the remainder of the match and reported to the athletic training facility the next day for evaluation. DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS: Concussion. TREATMENT: The athlete was removed from all athletic activities. Her symptoms were monitored based on the Zurich guidelines. She was also instructed to wear an accelerometer on her hip and to carry an on-person GPS receiver at all times for 10 days. Her total symptom scores for the 4 symptomatic days were 82, 39, 49, and 36. Her mean MAPS functional score for symptomatic days 3 through 5 was 900.9 and for asymptomatic days 6 through 11 was 2734.9. UNIQUENESS: We monitored the patient's function during the concussion-recovery process using an on-person GPS receiver and accelerometer to calculate personalized MAPS scores. This novel approach to measuring function after injury may provide a useful complementary tool to help with return-to-play decisions. CONCLUSIONS: An on-person GPS receiver and accelerometer were used to observe the patient's physical activity in a free-living environment, allowing for an objective measure of function during recovery. Her MAPS scores were low while she was symptomatic and increased as she became asymptomatic. We saw the expected inverse relationship between symptoms and function. In situations where accuracy of reported symptoms may be a concern, this measure may provide a way to verify the validity of, or raise doubts about, self-reported symptoms.

Epidemiology of Hip Injuries in the National Basketball Association: A 24-Year Overview.

BACKGROUND: Professional athletes are subject to various injuries that are often dictated by the nature of their sport. Professional basketball players previously have been shown to sustain injuries throughout the musculoskeletal system, most commonly to the ankle and knee. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to report the epidemiology of injuries specific to the pelvis, hip, and thigh and their effect on games missed in professional basketball players. STUDY DESIGN: Descriptive epidemiological. METHODS: Records were recalled from the National Basketball Association epidemiological database for athletic-related pelvis, hip, or thigh injuries that occurred from the 1988-1989 through the 2011-2012 seasons. The primary information collected included anatomic location where the injury occurred, when in the course of the season injury occurred, specific pathology, date, activity at the time of injury, injury mechanism, number of practices and games missed, and whether surgery was required. The number of practices and games missed were summed to yield the number of days missed per episode. RESULTS: There were 2852 cases (14.6% of all athletic-related injuries) involving 967 individual players. In 1746 (61.2%) cases, injuries occurred during game competition. Across the course of this study, clinical incidence of injury to the pelvis, hip, or thigh was 1.50 per 100 players. The mean (±standard deviation) number of days missed per case was 6.3 ± 10.2. The quadriceps group was the most commonly injured structure (contusions and strains) and had a significantly higher game-related injury rate than other structures (0.96 per 100 athletic exposures, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.87-1.04). Players had the greatest risk (relative risk = 1.38, 95% CI = 1.26-1.52) of sustaining a strain than any other type of injury, with a game-related injury rate of 1.79 (95% CI = 1.67-1.90). The hamstring muscle group was the most frequently strained. Strains were more likely to occur in the preseason. CONCLUSION: Pelvis, hip, and thigh injuries in professional basketball players are commonly extra-articular strains and contusions and represent a significant burden of injury. The actual amount of intra-articular hip disorders may be underestimated, as the awareness of these disorders has increased only in the past decade. With the awareness of the types of injuries that occur in this region, focused injury prevention strategies may be beneficial to players and teams at all levels of competition, not only professional athletes.