A Survey of Combat Athletes' Rapid Weight Loss Practices and Evaluation of the Relationship With Concussion Symptom Recall.

OBJECTIVE: There is a high incidence of concussion and frequent utilization of rapid weight loss (RWL) methods among combat sport athletes, yet the apparent similarity in symptoms experienced as a result of a concussion or RWL has not been investigated. This study surveyed combat sports athletes to investigate the differences in symptom onset and recovery between combat sports and evaluated the relationships between concussion and RWL symptoms. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Data were collected through an online survey. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred thirty-two (115 male athletes and 17 female athletes) combat sport athletes. INTERVENTIONS: Modified Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT) symptom checklist and weight-cutting questionnaire. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Survey items included combat sport discipline, weight loss, medical history, weight-cutting questionnaire, and concussion and weight-cutting symptom checklists. RESULTS: Strong associations ( rs = 0.6-0.7, P < 0.05) were observed between concussion and RWL symptoms. The most frequently reported symptom resolution times were 24 to 48 hours for a weight cut (WC; 59%) and 3 to 5 days for a concussion (43%), with 60% to 70% of athletes reporting a deterioration and lengthening of concussion symptoms when undergoing a WC. Most of the athletes (65%) also reported at least one WC in their career to " not go according to plan ," resulting in a lack of energy (83%) and strength/power (70%). CONCLUSIONS: Rapid weight loss and concussion symptoms are strongly associated, with most of the athletes reporting a deterioration of concussion symptoms during a WC. The results indicate that concussion symptoms should be monitored alongside hydration status to avoid any compound effects of prior RWL on the interpretation of concussion assessments and to avoid potential misdiagnoses among combat athletes.

Prosthetic Rehabilitation in Practice: An Exploration of Experiential Knowledge in the Multidisciplinary Team.

The aim of this research was to explore the experiential knowledge of patient-facing staff working in a prosthetic rehabilitation center in the United Kingdom. Eleven members of staff with varied roles and levels of experience took part in semi-structured interviews. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. Six themes were identified: (a) defining successful rehabilitation, (b) the complex reality of patient-centered care, (c) organizational and interpersonal challenges, (d) who provides psychological support? (e) prosthetic as a panacea, and (f) crash landing. These findings highlight the impact of rotational roles in an environment reliant on experiential knowledge, the challenge of applying patient-centered care models, and the negative effect of unrealistic beliefs about prosthetics on patients and staff. This study contributes to a limited pool of literature articulating the experiential knowledge of staff in the context of rehabilitation after major lower limb loss, facilitating the translation of practice-based evidence into evidence-based practice.

Narratives of Recovery Over the First Year After Major Lower Limb Loss.

The objectives of this research were to extend previous research by exploring the psychosocial experiences of patients over the first year after major lower limb amputation (MLLA) and identify implications for rehabilitation practice. This research took place at a United Kingdom-based National Health Service-operated prosthetic rehabilitation center. Thirty patients were recruited who had experienced MLLA within the last year and were undertaking prosthetic rehabilitation. Data were collected through semi-structured narrative interviews, observation, and a reflexive journal and analyzed using dialogical narrative analysis. The concept of well-being was used to map patients' recovery trajectories, and five narrative typologies were identified: accelerated decline, adaptation, illusory cure, muddling along, and projection. This article advances knowledge by opening up new possibilities for anticipating patients' future needs through the stories they are telling in the present and provides the basis for additional resources supporting psychosocial recovery.

Psychological models in sport psychology: A preliminary investigation.

Applied psychology is characterised by a variety of theoretical models, informing distinct approaches to classification, explanation, and intervention in service-delivery. Such theoretical or psychological models include behavioural, biological, cognitive, humanistic, psychodynamic, and social paradigms, with exposure to these models and attitude formation occurring within the structured university-based stage of sport psychology development. It is, therefore, important for the sport psychological domain to investigate developing attitudes, given these models inform subsequent professional practice and decision making. Accordingly, the present study explored the attitudes of Stage-1 sport psychology students through a modified form of the Maudsley Attitude Questionnaire (34 males, M age = 24.71 years, SD = 7.23 and 42 females, M age = 24.76 years, SD = 6.20). The questionnaire was designed to assess attitudes across eight psychological models (e.g. biological, cognitive) and four sport psychology issues (pre-performance anxiety, a lack of confidence, depression, and eating disorders). Analyses of variance demonstrated significant main, model, and interaction effects. No one psychological model was endorsed by all respondents, with model endorsement varying significantly as a function of the issue presented. Principal Axis Factoring revealed a large contribution attributable to cognitive-behavioural and 'eclectic' (mixed elements of social constructionism, biological, and psychodynamic) models. In contrast, the spiritual model represented low levels of participant endorsement and application. Investigation of Stage-1 students can promote an evidence-based understanding on currently developing attitudes and inform the development of sport psychology education, supervision of training routes, and subsequent professional delivery.

Does priming really put the gloss on performance?

Priming has recently emerged in the literature as offering advantages in the preparation for skilled performance. Accordingly, the current study tested the efficacy of imagery against a priming paradigm as a means of enhancing motor performance: in essence, contrasting a preparation technique primarily under the conscious control of the performer to an unconscious technique promoting automaticity. The imagery intervention was guided by the PETTLEP model, while the priming intervention took the form of a scrambled sentence task. Eighteen skilled field-hockey players performed a dribbling task under imagery, priming, skill-focus, and control conditions. Results revealed a significant improvement in speed and technical accuracy for the imagery condition as opposed to the skill-focus, control, and priming conditions. In addition, there were no significant differences in performance times or technical accuracy between the priming and control conditions. The study provides further support for the efficacy of imagery to elicit enhanced motor skill performance but questions the emerging emphasis on priming as an effective tool in preparation for physical tasks.