The Effect of a Balance Training Program on the Balance and Technical Skills of Adolescent Soccer Players.

Soccer is a complex sport, and balance appears to play a crucial role in the quality execution of technical skills, which are mostly performed while standing on one foot. Nevertheless, in younger ages, when learning still affects soccer performance, the effect of a balance-training program on the player's balance and technical skills remains unexplored. This research examined the effect of a balance-training program (BTP) on balance and technical skills of adolescent soccer players. Τhe participating volunteers were thirty-two soccer players (12-13 years old with 3.84 ± 0.95 years of practice), randomly separated into two groups: an experimental (EXP, n1 = 17) and a control group (CON, n2 = 15). Both groups were evaluated in static and dynamic balance and in technical skills (dribbling, passing, juggling, and shooting with dominant and non-dominant legs) before (Pre-condition) and after the intervention (Post-condition) which was an eight-week BTP for the EXP group and a placebo-training program for the CON group. Α 2 by 2 (groups×condition) mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures on the condition factor was used to assess possible differences between groups. A significant groups × condition interaction effect was found in dynamic balance (p = 0.008), static (p = 0.042), and shooting (p = 0.022) with dominant leg performance. The EXP group improved (p = 0.007) its static balance by 37.82% and also significantly improved its dynamic balance and shooting accuracy with dominant leg in Post condition by 24.98% (p = 0.006) and 83.84% (p = 0.006) respectively. No significant improvement of other variables was detected in the EXP group Post condition. Dynamic and static balance, and shooting with dominant leg skills can be improved in adolescent soccer players through a specialized 8-week BTP. Balance-training program may contribute to technical skill improvement in soccer training.

Pivot Step Jump: A New Test for Evaluating Jumping Ability in Young Basketball Players.

Jumping ability in basketball is usually assessed using standardized vertical jump tests. However, they lack specificity and do not consider the player's basketball skills. Several studies have suggested performing specific jump tests, which are tailored to the movement patterns and requirements of a basketball game. The pivot step jump test (PSJT) is a novel test designed to evaluate the specific jumping abilities of basketball players by combining a pivot step on one leg with a maximum bilateral vertical jump. This study had two aims: to determine the reliability and validity of the PSJT using typical jump tests as the criterion measure and to demonstrate the PSJT as a practical test to evaluate specific jumping ability in young male and female basketball players. Twenty female (EGA; 14.0 ± 0.7 years, 59.3 ± 7.9 kg, 162.1 ± 5.5 cm) and fifteen male (EGB; 14.0 ± 0.7 years, 58.1 ± 7.7 kg, 170.3 ± 6.4 cm) basketball players participated in the study. The test−retest reliability of the PSJT within sessions (intrasession reliability) and across sessions (intersession reliability) was assessed within EGA. For the evaluation of validity, EGB performed the PSJT and a series of criterion jumping tests. For EGA, no changes (p > 0.05) were found in PSJT performance between test sessions and excellent intra- and intersession reliability was observed (ICCs > 0.75). Correlation coefficients indicated high factorial validity between the jumping tests and PSJT (r = 0.71−0.91, p < 0.001). The PSJT appears to offer a valid assessment of jumping ability in basketball and is a practical test for assessing sport-specific jumping skills in young basketball players.

Impact of lockdown on smoking and sleeping in the early COVID-19 presence: Datasets of Greek Adults sample.

The impact of lockdown on life style and behaviour have piqued the interest of people and scientific community, all over the world. It has been demonstrated that in some countries, mandatory stay-at-home limitations and self-isolation measures are linked to an increase in sleeping hours and smoking cigarettes per day. However, these results derive from countries that lockdown had different features and length, and it is possible that society, culture, customs, ecological or other factors may independently or in combination affect life style habits (such sleeping and smoking) in different populations. So, we focus on sleeping and smoking changes in Greek adults during the lockdown of early COVID-19 presence in Greece. Therefore, our aim was to investigate whether lockdown alters smoking and sleeping habits and whether physical activity (PA), gender, age or body mass index (BMI) play a role. The modified online-based Active-Q (Greek version) questionnaire (see Supplementary file 1_Active-Q_modyfied) was used to collect data prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (PRE condition) and during physical distancing and lockdown measures (POST condition). The data period collection was from April 4 to April 19, 2020 (15 days in total) and respondents classified into four PA categories based on their sporting activities (PRE condition), five age categories and four BMI categories, which corresponding to different subgroup. Overall, sleeping hours change (from PRE to POST condition) was 11.80% and smoking cigarettes per day change was 9.35%. However, it appears that between the different subgroups significant differences were also identified.

Multipotential stromal cells in the talus and distal tibia in ankle osteoarthritis - Presence, potency and relationships to subchondral bone changes.

A large proportion of ankle osteoarthritis (OA) has an early onset and is post-traumatic. Surgical interventions have low patient satisfaction and relatively poor clinical outcome, whereas joint-preserving treatments, which rely on endogenous multipotential stromal cells (MSCs), result in suboptimal repair. This study investigates MSC presence and potency in OA-affected talocrural osteochondral tissue. Bone volume fraction (BV/TV) changes for the loading region trabecular volume and subchondral bone plate (SBP) thickness in OA compared with healthy tissue were investigated using microcomputed tomography. CD271-positive MSC topography was related to bone and cartilage damage in OA tissue, and in vitro MSC potency was compared with control healthy iliac crest (IC) MSCs. A 1.3- to 2.5-fold SBP thickening was found in both OA talus and tibia, whereas BV/TV changes were depth-dependent. MSCs were abundant in OA talus and tibia, with similar colony characteristics. Tibial and talar MSCs were tripotential, but talar MSCs had 10-fold lower adipogenesis and twofold higher chondrogenesis than IC MSCs (P = .01 for both). Cartilage damage in both OA tibia and talus correlated with SBP thickening and CD271+ MSCs was 1.4- to twofold more concentrated near the SBP. This work shows multipotential MSCs are present in OA talocrural subchondral bone, with their topography suggesting ongoing involvement in SBP thickening. Potentially, biomechanical stimulation could augment the chondrogenic differentiation of MSCs for joint-preserving treatments.

Mechanical characterisation of the lateral collateral ligament complex of the ankle at realistic sprain-like strain rates.

BACKGROUND: Synthetic interventions continue to evolve with the progression made in materials science, surgical technologies and surgical methods. To facilitate the evolution of synthetic devices for lateral ankle repair a better understanding of the mechanical properties and failure mechanisms of the lateral collateral ligament (LCL) complex is required. This study aimed to improve understanding of the mechanical properties and failure modes of the LCL complex at strain rates representative of sprain. METHOD: The LCLs were dissected from six human cadavers to produce individual bone-ligament-bone specimens. A mechanical testing device uni-axially loaded the ligaments in tension. Initially, preconditioning between 2 N and a load value corresponding to 3.5% strain was conducted for 15 cycles, before extension to failure at strain rate of 100%.s-1. The results were stratified by age, weight and body mass index (BMI) to explore potential correlations with ligament ultimate failure load or ligament stiffness. RESULTS: The mean ultimate failure loads and the 95% confidence intervals for the ATFL, calcaneofibular (CFL) and posterior talofibular (PTFL) ligaments were 263.6 ± 164.3 N, 367.8 ±â€¯79.8 N and 351.4 ± 110.8 N, respectively. A strong positive Pearson correlation was found between BMI and ultimate failure load of the CFL (r = 0.919; P = .01). A non-significant relationship was found between the mechanical properties and both age and weight. The ATFL avulsed from the fibula four times, the CFL avulsed from the fibula twice, the PTFL avulsed from the talus twice and all remaining failures were mid-substance. CONCLUSION: The results identify the forces required to induce failure of the individual ligaments of the LCL complex and the related failure modes of individual ligaments. A correlation may exist between BMI and the ultimate failure load of the CFL and PTFL, although a greater sample size is required for confirmation.

The regenerative therapies of the ankle degeneration: a focus on multipotential mesenchymal stromal cells.

The ankle degeneration ranging from focal osteochondral lesions to osteoarthritis can cause a total joint function loss. With rising life expectancy and activity of the patients, various regenerative therapies were introduced aiming to preserve the joint function via the induction of cartilage and bone repair. Here, biological events and mechanical changes of the ankle degeneration were discussed. The regenerative therapies were reviewed versus the standard surgical treatment. We especially focused on the use of mesenchymal (multipotential) stromal cells (MSCs) highlighting their dual functions of regeneration and cell modulation with an emphasis on the emerging MSC-based clinical studies. Being at an early step, more basic and clinical research is needed to optimize the applications of all ankle regenerative therapies including MSC-based methods.

Anticoagulation therapy and proximal femoral fracture treatment: An update.

Hip fractures in the elderly population have become a 'disease' with increasing incidence.Most of the geriatric patients are affected by a number of comorbidities.Coagulopathies continue to be a special point of interest for the orthopaedic trauma surgeon, with the management of this high-risk group of patients a hot topic of debate among the orthopaedic community.While a universal consensus on how to manage thromboprophylaxis for this special cohort of patients has not been reached, multiple attempts to define a widely accepted protocol have been published. Cite this article: Ktistakis I, Giannoudis V, Giannoudis PV. Anticoagulation therapy and proximal femoral fracture treatment: an update. EFORT Open Rev 2016;1:310-315. DOI: 10.1302/2058-5241.1.160034.

Pin-site care: can we reduce the incidence of infections?

BACKGROUND: This study was conducted to determine the pin-site care protocols currently in use and to analyse their effectiveness and outcomes. METHODS: PubMed, the Cochrane Library and Embase databases were screened for manuscripts that described comparative studies of different methods of pin-site care and referred to complications related to any kind of external fixator application. RESULTS: A total of 369 manuscripts were screened and only 13 of these met the inclusion criteria evaluating different protocols of pin-site care. This review is based on a total of 574 patients. Infection rates were very variable depending on the type of implant used and the protocol of pin-site care applied. CONCLUSIONS: None of the different protocols of pin-site care that were evaluated in this study were associated with a 0% infection rate. There is currently no consensus in the international literature about which protocol should be applied universally. Meticulous surgical technique during pin insertion and implementation of one of the existing protocols of pin-site care are the mainstay of prevention and/or reduction of the incidence of pin-site infections.