Development of an evidence-based swimming representative military task to assess swimming competency in the British Army.

BACKGROUND: There is a requirement for British Army personnel to operate in/around water. Assessing role-related swimming/water competence will support personnel to conduct their job-roles safely and effectively. OBJECTIVE: To undertake a Job-Task Analysis (JTA) of British Army personnel when working in/around water and use this information to develop a Swimming Representative Military Task (RMT) to assess swimming/water competence. METHODS: Workshops, surveys, and observations were used to conduct a JTA, which identified and described job-tasks conducted by British Army personnel in/around water. Ergonomic analysis of these job-tasks identified seven water-based physical actions, which were considered fundamental for all personnel to be competent in performing. These seven actions guided design of a Swimming RMT, which was subsequently conducted twice by 103 serving personnel (89 men, 11 women) and once by 65 recruits (49 men, 16 women). RESULTS: The RMT comprised of entering the water in combat fatigues and webbing, removing webbing, swimming 50 m, and staying afloat for up to 10 minutes. During RMT trials, in trial 1, 85% of serving personnel and 74% of recruits successfully completed the RMT, which increased to 93% in serving personnel for trial 2. Across trials 1 and 2, all three timed RMT elements showed moderate-high correlational reliability (ICC range: 0.462-0.791). On average, serving personnel were quicker to complete the 50 m swim phase compared to recruits (91±24 s vs. 100±26 s; U = 2575.0, rb = -0.192, p = 0.039). CONCLUSIONS: The JTA-informed Swimming RMT provides an assessment of the minimum role-related swimming/water competence standard for British Army personnel.

A Descriptive Exploration of Heart Rate Response to Live Professional Irish Dance Performance.

Introduction: Research investigating the physiological demands of dance performance has documented exercise intensity and time spent in work and rest; however, available data are across limited dance genres and often use rehearsal or simulated conditions. Real-time data recorded during live performance with an audience are limited. The aim of the study is to provide a detailed description of the physiological demands of live professional Irish dance performance. Method: The entire Irish dance cast of Riverdance participated in the study (n = 24). Approval was granted by the Institutional Research Ethics Committee. Matinee and evening performances on the first day of a tour were examined in a descriptive, cross-sectional design. Heart rate (HR) monitors worn discretely under costumes recorded data every 5-seconds. Video analysis allowed calculation of time spent in work and rest. All descriptive analyses were split by role (troupe/lead) and sex (male/female). Results: Dancers worked at hard/very hard intensities (mean > 72%, peak > 91% HRmax) for ~3 minutes at a time for 3-9 individual dance numbers. There was a high variation in overall demand experienced by individual dancers due to variation in both duration and intensity of on-stage time, dependent upon their role. Mean total on-stage time was 18.18 ± 5.82 minutes, 19.43 ± 5.80 minutes, 29.71 ± 0.62 minutes, 20.00 ± 0.00 minutes for male troupe, female troupe, male lead, and female lead dancers, respectively. Recovery periods were varied in terms of duration, activity undertaken, and HR response. Conclusion: Individual dance numbers within a professional Irish dance show were high intensity for a short duration when considered in isolation, but overall physiological demand experienced by any one dancer across the entire show varied dependent upon their role and off-stage/recovery practices. Future research investigating the physiological demands of dance performance should ensure analysis accounts for the individual dancer's role and should capture the entire show duration in repeated exposures.

Beyond change scores: Employing an improved statistical approach to analyze the impact of entry fitness on physical performance during British Army basic training in men and women.

The aim was to use a robust statistical approach to examine whether physical fitness at entry influences performance changes between men and women undertaking British Army basic training (BT). Performance of 2 km run, seated medicine ball throw (MBT) and isometric mid-thigh pull (MTP) were assessed at entry and completion of Standard Entry (SE), Junior Entry-Short (JE-Short), and Junior Entry-Long (JE-Long) training for 2350 (272 women) recruits. Performance change was analyzed with entry performance as a covariate (ANCOVA), with an additional interaction term allowing different slopes for courses and genders (p < 0.05). Overall, BT courses saw average improvements in 2 km run performance (SE: -6.8% [-0.62 min], JE-Short: -4.6% [-0.43 min], JE-Long: -7.7% [-0.70 min]; all p < 0.001) and MBT (1.0-8.8% [0.04-0.34 m]; all p < 0.05) and MTP (4.5-26.9% [6.5-28.8 kg]; all p < 0.001). Regression models indicate an expected form of "regression to the mean" whereby test performance change was negatively associated with entry fitness in each course (those with low baseline fitness exhibit larger training improvements; all interaction effects: p < 0.001, η p 2 $$ {\eta}_{\mathrm{p}}^2 $$ > 0.006), particularly for women. However, when matched for entry fitness, men displayed considerable improvements in all tests, relative to women. Training courses were effective in developing recruit physical fitness, whereby the level of improvement is, in large part, dependent on entry fitness. Factors including age, physical maturity, course length, and physical training, could also contribute to the variability in training response between genders and should be considered when analyzing and/or developing physical fitness in these cohorts for future success of military job-task performance.

Association between external training loads and injury incidence during 44 weeks of military training.

Military training is physically arduous and associated with high injury incidence. Unlike in high-performance sport, the interaction between training load and injury has not been extensively researched in military personnel. Sixty-three (43 men, 20 women; age 24 ± 2 years; stature 1.76 ± 0.09 m; body mass 79.1 ± 10.8 kg) British Army Officer Cadets undergoing 44 weeks of training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst volunteered to participate. Weekly training load (cumulative 7-day moderate-vigorous physical activity [MVPA], vigorous PA [VPA], and the ratio between MVPA and sedentary-light PA [SLPA; MVPA:SLPA]) was monitored using a wrist-worn accelerometer (GENEActiv, UK). Self-report injury data were collected and combined with musculoskeletal injuries recorded at the Academy medical center. Training loads were divided into quartiles with the lowest load group used as the reference to enable comparisons using odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Overall injury incidence was 60% with the most common injury sites being the ankle (22%) and knee (18%). High (load; OR; 95% CI [>2327 mins; 3.44; 1.80-6.56]) weekly cumulative MVPA exposure significantly increased odds of injury. Similarly, likelihood of injury significantly increased when exposed to low-moderate (0.42-0.47; 2.45 [1.19-5.04]), high-moderate (0.48-0.51; 2.48 [1.21-5.10]), and high MVPA:SLPA loads (>0.51; 3.60 [1.80-7.21]). High MVPA and high-moderate MVPA:SLPA increased odds of injury by ~2.0 to 3.5 fold, suggesting that the ratio of workload to recovery is important for mitigating injury occurrence.

Pilot study investigating diagnostic utility of serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 in asthma in 'real world' clinical practice in India.

AIMS: At a tissue level, matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) and transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-ß1) contribute to allergic airway inflammation, tissue remodelling and disease severity in asthma via different pathways. Their peripheral blood levels and role in diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring has not been adequately explored. We investigated the association between MMP-1 and TGF-ß in moderate and severe persistent asthma and evaluated their performance characteristics by constructing receiver operating characteristic curves. METHODS: Serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 were measured using ELISA in 75 adults; moderate persistent asthma (n=25), severe persistent asthma (n=25) and healthy community controls (n=25). Severity of asthma was determined as per Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines. Subjects were followed up for 3 months and treatment responsiveness was assessed by spirometry and symptom response. RESULTS: Serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 were significantly elevated in asthmatics compared with controls (p<0.0001 and p<0.01). While serum MMP-1 was elevated in severe asthma compared with moderate asthma (p<0.05), TGF-ß1 was lower in severe asthma compared with moderate asthma (p<0.05). The performance characteristics of serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 were promising in this cohort with sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of 82%, 100%, 100% and 99% and 62%, 100%, 100% and 97.8%, respectively; sensitivity of MMP-1 being superior. CONCLUSION: This pilot study showed that serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 levels are elevated in chronic asthma and may serve as a useful adjunct in differentiating moderate from severe asthma. A large multicentre study in well characterised cohort of asthmatics is warranted to investigate their role in diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring.

Relationship Between Performance Competence and Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Contemporary Dance.

AIMS: While a foundation of basic cardiorespiratory fitness is beneficial for coping with the physiological demands of dance training and performance, the extent to which cardiorespiratory fitness levels are related to performance ability is not all-together clear. This study aimed to directly compare aerobic capacity (VO2peak) and anaerobic threshold (AT) to an aesthetic competence measure (ACM) in student contemporary dancers. METHODS: Participants were 18 contemporary dance students and all undertook a one-off treadmill test to volitional exhaustion in the week leading up to a performance to determine VO2peak and AT. In the same week, a final rehearsal for the performance was filmed to allow retrospective analysis of specific performance competence. RESULTS: Mean VO2peak values of 47.67 ± 5.84 ml/kg/min and AT values of 43.18 ± 7.72 ml/kg/min (90.68 ± 11.87 %VO2peak) were recorded, and the mean total ACM score was 52.67 ± 8.74. No significant correlations were found between cardiorespiratory fitness variables and ACM scores. Regression analyses revealed experience level to be the only significant predictor of total ACM score (p<0.05, R2=0.12, SEE=11.91). CONCLUSIONS: The range of choreography used for assessment may limit the present study; nevertheless, as level of experience did significantly predict ACM total score, it is suggested that vocational dance training may be developing the performance and technical skills of students but not sufficiently developing their physical conditioning.

Validity of energy expenditure estimation methods during 10 days of military training.

Wearable physical activity (PA) monitors have improved the ability to estimate free-living total energy expenditure (TEE) but their application during arduous military training alongside more well-established research methods has not been widely documented. This study aimed to assess the validity of two wrist-worn activity monitors and a PA log against doubly labeled water (DLW) during British Army Officer Cadet (OC) training. For 10 days of training, twenty (10 male and 10 female) OCs (mean ± SD: age 23 ± 2 years, height 1.74 ± 0.09 m, body mass 77.0 ± 9.3 kg) wore one research-grade accelerometer (GENEActiv, Cambridge, UK) on the dominant wrist, wore one commercially available monitor (Fitbit SURGE, USA) on the non-dominant wrist, and completed a self-report PA log. Immediately prior to this 10-day period, participants consumed a bolus of DLW and provided daily urine samples, which were analyzed by mass spectrometry to determine TEE. Bivariate correlations and limits of agreement (LoA) were employed to compare TEE from each estimation method to DLW. Average daily TEE from DLW was 4112 ± 652 kcal·day-1 against which the GENEActiv showed near identical average TEE (mean bias ± LoA: -15 ± 851 kcal. day-1 ) while Fitbit tended to underestimate (-656 ± 683 kcal·day-1 ) and the PA log substantially overestimate (+1946 ± 1637 kcal·day-1 ). Wearable physical activity monitors provide a cheaper and more practical method for estimating free-living TEE than DLW in military settings. The GENEActiv accelerometer demonstrated good validity for assessing daily TEE and would appear suitable for use in large-scale, longitudinal military studies.

Factors Affecting Performance on an Army Urban Operation Casualty Evacuation for Male and Female Soldiers.

INTRODUCTION: This study was conducted to determine what physical and physiological characteristics contribute to the performance of an urban operation casualty evacuation (UO) and its predictive test, FORCE combat (FC) and describe the metabolic demand of the UO in female soldiers. METHODS: Seventeen military members (9 M and 8 F) completed a loaded walking maximal aerobic test, the UO and FC. Heart rate reserve (HRR) and completion time were used as efficiency/performance measures. Oxygen consumption (VO2) was directly measured for UO on five female participants with a portable indirect calorimetry system, and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to determine the contribution of the non-modifiable (age, sex, height) and modifiable characteristics (lean body mass to dead mass ratio (LBM:DM), VO2max corrected for load (L.VO2max), peak force (PF) measured on an isometric mid-thigh pull (IMTP) and medicine ball chest throw distance (Dist) on to the performance of each exercise. RESULTS: LBM:DM and PF were the only factors included in the stepwise regression model for UO, predicting 70% of UO performance (p < 0.01). For FC, L.VO2max only was included in the stepwise regression model predicting 54% of FC performance (p < 0.01). Sex, age and height were not included in the regression model. The average metabolic cost of UO was 21.4 mL of O2*kg-1*min-1 in female soldiers while wearing PPE. CONCLUSION: This study showed that modifiable factors such as body composition, PF on IMTP and L.VO2max are key contributors to performance on UO and FC performance.

Biomarkers in Human Anaphylaxis: A Critical Appraisal of Current Evidence and Perspectives.

Anaphylaxis is a type I hypersensitivity reaction that is potentially fatal if not promptly treated. It is a clinical diagnosis, although measurement of serial serum total mast cell tryptase (MCT) is gold standard and may help differentiate anaphylaxis from its mimics. The performance characteristics of MCT assays in anaphylaxis has been variable in previous studies, due to multiple factors including differences in the definition of anaphylaxis, methods of MCT interpretation, clinical setting of anaphylaxis, causative agents, and timing of blood sample. An international consensus equation for MCT to interpret mast cell activation has been proposed and recently validated in the context of peri-operative anaphylaxis during general anesthesia. There has been an interest in the detection of newer biomarkers in anaphylaxis including platelet activation factor (PAF), chymase, carboxypeptidase A3, dipeptidyl peptidase I (DPPI), basogranulin, and CCL-2. The key determinants of an ideal biomarker in anaphylaxis are half-life, sample handling and processing requirements, and cost. There may be a role for metabolomics and systems biology in the exploration of novel biomarkers in anaphylaxis. Future studies applying these approaches might provide greater insight into factors determining severity, clinical risk stratification, identification of mast cell disorders and improving our understanding of this relatively complex acute immunological condition. Post mortem MCT evaluation is used in Forensic Medicine during autopsy for cases involving sudden death or suspected anaphylaxis. Interpretation of post mortem MCT is challenging since there is limited published evidence and the test is confounded by multiple variables largely linked to putrefaction and site of sampling. Thus, there is no international consensus on a reference range. In this state of the art review, we will focus on the practical challenges in the laboratory diagnosis of anaphylaxis and critically appraise (a) performance characteristics of MCT in anaphylaxis in different clinical scenarios (b) the role for novel biomarkers and (c) post mortem MCT and its role in fatal anaphylaxis.

The concordance between component tests and clinical history in British adults with suspected pollen-food syndrome to peanut and hazelnut.

BACKGROUND: Mild oropharyngeal symptoms to peanut/hazelnut occur in ~30% of patients with pollen-food syndrome (PFS). Component tests are considered a useful adjunct to the diagnosis and may help differentiate PFS from those at a risk of anaphylaxis due to storage protein/lipid transfer protein (LTP) sensitisation. AIMS: To assess concordance between component tests and clinical history in suspected PFS to peanut/hazelnut in a specialist clinic. METHODS: Adult patients were classified into PFS (group 1, n=69) and PFS with mild systemic symptoms (group 2, n=45) based on clinical history. Specific IgE (sIgE) of ≥0.35 kUA/L was considered positive as per manufacturers' recommendation. Kappa (κ) inter-rater agreement was calculated for concordance between clinical classification and test profiles. RESULTS: Group 1 hazelnut: 85% monosensitised to Cor a1, 12% to storage protein/s or LTP and 3% negative to all components. Group 1 peanut: 41% monosensitised to Ara h8, 44% to storage protein/s or ±LTP and 15% negative to all components. Group 2 hazelnut: 67% monosensitised to Cor a1, 16% sensitised to storage protein/s and 17% negative to all components. Group 2 peanut: 19% monosensitised to Ara h8, 62% sensitised to storage protein/s and/or LTP and 19% negative to all components.SIgE to Ara h8 and Cor a1 were greater in group 1 versus group 2: (median (IQR) kUA/L; hazelnut: 12.1 (7.8-25.2) vs 2.4 (0.36-6.3), p<0.001; peanut: 2.4 (0.10-21.1) vs 0.3 (0-3), p<0.01)). CONCLUSION: Concordance between component tests and clinical history for adults with PFS was good for hazelnut (κ=0.63) but poor for peanut (κ=-0.12). Food challenges are warranted in discordant cases for an accurate diagnosis.

Uncertainty of measurement: an immunology laboratory perspective.

'Measurement uncertainty of measured quantity values' (ISO15189) requires that the laboratory shall determine the measurement uncertainty for procedures used to report measured quantity values on patients' samples. Where we have numeric data measurement uncertainty can be expressed as the standard deviation or as the co-efficient of variation. However, in immunology many of the assays are reported either as semi-quantitative (i.e. an antibody titre) or qualitative (positive or negative) results. In the latter context, measuring uncertainty is considerably more difficult. There are, however, strategies which can allow us to minimise uncertainty. A number of parameters can contribute to making measurements uncertain. These include bias, precision, standard uncertainty (expressed as standard deviation or coefficient of variation), sensitivity, specificity, repeatability, reproducibility and verification. Closely linked to these are traceability and standardisation. In this article we explore the challenges presented to immunology with regard to measurement uncertainty. Many of these challenges apply equally to other disciplines working with qualitative or semi-quantitative data.