Pain characterization in patients with Parkinson's disease.

BACKGROUND: Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) often report chronic pain, which is one of the most complex non-motor symptoms. Therefore, this study aims to review the literature on the characteristics of pain in patients with PD. METHODS: A systematic literature review was conducted following MOOSE recommendations. Observational studies reporting pain in patients with PD were included. No time restrictions were applied, but studies in Portuguese, Spanish, and English were considered. The search was performed in PubMed®, LILACS, and SciELO databases. RESULTS: Twenty-six articles of observational studies were identified, reporting an average pain prevalence of 67.36%, emphasizing the significance of this symptom in the PD population. Pain was reported in various body regions, including lower limbs, upper limbs, lumbar spine, cervical spine, and other joints. Pain classification varied, encompassing musculoskeletal pain, PD-related pain, neuropathic pain, and dystonic pain, among others. DISCUSSION: Pain in patients with PD is a prevalent and multifactorial condition, significantly impacting patients' quality of life. CONCLUSION: Heterogeneity in data across included studies was observed, highlighting the need for additional research to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of pain in patients with PD and develop effective therapeutic strategies to address this symptom and improve the quality of life for individuals living with the disease.

Power and anaerobic capacity in female soccer: A comparison between different age-categories

Introduction: Nowadays, female soccer can be considered one of fastest growing sports trends. However, investigations regarding female soccer players’ performance are still scarce comparing to male soccer players. The purpose of this study was to compare the athletic profile of female soccer players from adult and youth categories of a professional soccer club. Material and methods Forty-two female soccer players from a professional soccer club were recruited for this investigation (adult category n = 21; youth category n = 21). Performance tests were randomly assigned. Aerobic capacity, sprint, change-of-direction ability, and power performance were assessed. Results There were no significant differences between groups for any of the proposed parameters. Also, better unilateral jump performance for the right leg was observed among adult players (p = 0.05). Conclusions The study suggests that there is no clear discrepancy between youth and adult categories regarding power, sprint, change-of-direction ability, and aerobic performance. However, a trend towards lower limb asymmetry was observed among adult players. (AU)