Nerve conduction studies in lower limb of elite Nepalese football players: an insight into neural adaptations.

BACKGROUND: The study was aimed to assess somatic neural alterations in lower limbs of elite Nepalese football players by comparing their nerve conduction parameters with non-athletic controls. METHODS: Players (N.=27, age 22.74±2.52 yrs.) with excellent cardio-respiratory fitness and presenting no signs of injuries, and sedentary controls (N.=29, age 23.41±2.95 yrs.) were recruited for the study. Standard nerve conduction techniques were applied to evaluate posterior tibial and sural nerves in the dominant and non-dominant limbs of each individual. Conduction velocity, onset latency, amplitude and duration of the motor and sensory evoked responses were recorded. RESULTS: The players had significantly lower resting mean heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure than controls. Tibial compound muscle action potential (CMAP) showed higher amplitude as compared to controls; tibial proximal CMAP amplitude [(13.624±4.57) vs. (10.810±4.62) mV, P=0.035] of dominant leg, tibial proximal [(13.893±4.60) vs. (11.083±4.51) mV, P=0.045] and distal [(16.388±3.62) vs. (13.958±4.65) mV, P=0.049] amplitude of non-dominant leg. Likewise, players had significantly shorter tibial CMAPs duration of each lower limb compared with corresponding limb of controls. Sural nerve of non-dominant leg revealed shortened sensory nerve action potential duration [(1.729±0.25) vs. (1.904±0.289) ms, P=0.018]. CONCLUSIONS: Increased tibial CMAP amplitude and decreased CMAP duration in players suggest excitation of more number of motor units and higher synchronicity of muscle fibers' discharge than in controls respectively. Higher amplitude can also be attributed to increase in muscle fiber size and/or efficiency of neuromuscular transmission. Increased synchronicity indirectly reflects narrow range of conduction velocity among tibial neurons. The adaptive changes in somatic nerves need more crucial research for exact identification of sites and the structures responsible.

Subject preferences of first- and second-year medical students for their future specialization at Chitwan Medical College and Teaching Hospital, Chitwan, Nepal - a questionnaire-based study.

INTRODUCTION: The selection of a discipline for future specialization may be an important factor for the medical students' future career, and it is influenced by multiple factors. The interest of students in the early stages can be improved in subjects related to public health or of academic importance, as per need. METHODS: A questionnaire-based study was conducted among 265 first- and second-year medical students of Chitwan Medical College, Nepal to find out their subject of preference for postgraduation and the factors affecting their selection along with their interesting basic science subject. Only the responses from 232 completely filled questionnaires were analyzed. RESULTS: The preference of the students for clinical surgical (50.9%), clinical medical (45.3%), and basic medical (3.9%) sciences for postgraduation were in descending order. The most preferred specialty among male students was clinical surgical sciences (56.3%), and among female students, it was clinical medical sciences (53.6%). Although all the students responded to their preferred specialty, only 178 students specified the subject of their interest. General surgery (23.4%), pediatrics (23.4%), and anatomy (2.4%) were the most favored subjects for postgraduation among clinical surgical, clinical medical, and basic medical sciences specialties, respectively. More common reasons for selection of specific subject for future career were found to be: personal interests, good income, intellectual challenge, and others. CONCLUSION: Many students preferred clinical surgical sciences for their future specialization. Among the reasons for the selection of the specialty for postgraduation, no significant reason could be elicited from the present study.