Measurement properties of the EQ-5D in children and adolescents: a systematic review protocol.

BACKGROUND: Although the EQ-5D instruments have been initially designed for adult populations, there are new studies evaluating and applying these instruments to children and adolescents. The EuroQol Group adapted and created two versions designed for these groups, i.e., the EQ-5D-Y versions. The measurement properties of the EQ-5D have been systematically reviewed in different health conditions. However, there is a lack of a proper systematic assessment including the studies' risk of bias and focusing on recent studies assessing the EQ-5D instruments in children and adolescents. The lack of a systematic assessment of the EQ-5D versions does not allow us to have a comprehensive evaluation of the validity, reliability, and responsiveness of these instruments among children and adolescents. This systematic review aims to critically appraise and summarize the evidence on the measurement properties of the EQ-5D instruments (self-reported version - answered by children and adolescents; and proxy versions - versions reported by parents, caregivers, or health professionals) in children and adolescents. METHODS: A systematic review searching the following electronic databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, EconLit, National Health Service Economic Evaluation Database (NHS-EED), Health Technology Assessment (HTA) database. Two independent reviewers will screen titles and abstracts and select full texts for eligibility. The COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) methodology will be followed to conduct three main assessment steps: risk of bias, quality criteria for measurement properties, and evidence synthesis. DISCUSSION: This systematic review will provide comprehensive information about the evidence regarding the measurement properties of EQ-5D instruments in children and adolescents of different settings and countries. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: Open Science Framework with Registration https://osf.io/r8kt9/ and PROSPERO: CRD42020218382.

"Myths and Facts" Education Is Comparable to "Facts Only" for Recall of Back Pain Information but May Improve Fear-Avoidance Beliefs: An Embedded Randomized Trial.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of patient education with "myths and facts" versus "facts only" on recall of back pain information and fear-avoidance beliefs in patients with chronic low back pain (LBP). DESIGN: Randomized Study Within A Trial. METHODS: One hundred fifty-two participants with chronic LBP were included. Participants allocated to the "facts only" group received an information sheet with 6 LBP facts, whereas those allocated to the "myths and facts" group received the same information sheet, with each myth refuted by its respective fact. The primary outcome was a correct recall of back pain facts, and the secondary outcome was the physical activity component of the Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ-PA), 2 weeks after the provision of the information sheet. RESULTS: There was no evidence of a difference in the proportion of participants with a correct recall between the "myths and facts" and "facts only" groups (odds ratio = 0.98; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.48, 1.99) and no significant difference in FABQ-PA mean scores between groups (-1.58; 95% CI: -3.77, 0.61). Sensitivity analyses adjusted for prognostic factors showed no difference in information recall but a larger difference in FABQ-PA scores (-2.3; 95% CI: -4.56, -0.04). CONCLUSION: We found no overall difference in the recall of back pain information for patients provided with "myths and facts" compared with that for patients provided with "facts only" and a slight reduction in fear-avoidance beliefs for physical activity using "myths and facts" compared with that using "facts only," but the meaningfulness of this result is uncertain. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2022;52(9):586-594. Epub: 9 July 2022. doi:10.2519/jospt.2022.10989.

What is the foot strike pattern distribution in children and adolescents during running? A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of studies describing foot strike patterns in children and adolescents. This raises the question on what the natural foot strike pattern with less extrinsic influence should be and whether or not it is valid to make assumptions on adults based on the knowledge from children. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the distribution of foot strike patterns in children and adolescents during running, and the association of participants' characteristics with the foot strike patterns. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study. Videos were acquired with a high-speed camera and running speed was measured with a stopwatch. Bayesian analyses were performed to allow foot strike pattern inferences from the sample to the population distribution and a supervised machine learning procedure was implemented to develop an algorithm based on logistic mixed models aimed at classifying the participants in rearfoot, midfoot, or forefoot strike patterns. RESULTS: We have included 415 children and adolescents. The distribution of foot strike patterns was predominantly rearfoot for shod and barefoot assessments. Running condition (barefoot versus shod), speed, and footwear (with versus without heel elevation) seemed to influence the foot strike pattern. Those running shod were more likely to present rearfoot pattern compared to barefoot. The classification accuracy of the final algorithm ranged from 80% to 88%. CONCLUSIONS: The rearfoot pattern was predominant in our sample. Future well-designed prospective studies are needed to understand the influence of foot strike patterns on the incidence and prevalence of running-related injuries in children and adolescents during running, and in adult runners.

Overall confidence in the results of systematic reviews on exercise therapy for chronic low back pain: a cross-sectional analysis using the Assessing the Methodological Quality of Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) 2 tool.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the overall confidence in the results of systematic reviews of exercise therapy for chronic non-specific low back pain using the AMSTAR 2 tool. METHODS: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, PEDro and CINAHL was searched up to February 2017. Two independent reviewers selected systematic reviews of randomized controlled trials that investigated exercise therapy in patients with low back pain. AMSTAR 2 assessment was performed by pairs of reviewers, and the overall confidence in the results of the systematic reviews were rated as 'High', 'Moderate', 'Low' and 'Critically low'. Descriptive analysis was used to summarize the characteristics of included systematic reviews. The percentage of systematic reviews achieving each item from the AMSTAR 2 and the overall confidence in the results were tabulated. RESULTS: The search identified 38 systematic reviews. Most of the reviews included a median of 10 clinical trials and total sample size of 813 participants per review. Five of 38 (13%) reviews were Cochrane reviews, and 8 (21%) systematic reviews had a protocol published or registered prospectively. The overall confidence in the results of 28 reviews (74%) was rated as 'Critically low', 6 (16%) as 'Low', 1 (2%) as Moderate, while 3 of 38 reviews (8%) were rated as 'High'. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate very low confidence in the results of most systematic reviews of exercise in chronic non-specific low back pain. Clinicians are more likely to deliver the most efficacious interventions to patients by critically appraising systematic reviews using AMSTAR 2 before making their decisions.

Pragmatic neural tissue management improves short-term pain and disability in patients with sciatica: a single-arm clinical trial.

Objectives: To evaluate the clinical effect of sciatic neural mobilization in combination with the treatment of surrounding structures for sciatica patients. Secondly, we were also interested in identifying possible baseline characteristics that may be associated with improvements in pain and disability for sciatica patients. Methods: Twenty-eight patients with a clinical diagnosis of sciatica were treated with neural mobilization, joint mobilization and soft tissue techniques. Pain intensity and lumbar disability were assessed at baseline and after treatment using a Numerical Rating Scale (0-10) and the Oswestry Disability Index (0-100), respectively. The pre- and post-intervention data were compared. The research protocol was registered under the number NCT03663842. Results: Participants attended an average of 16 (SD±5.6) treatmentsessions over an average of 12 weeks. Decrease in pain scores (before median = 8, after median = 2; p < 0.001) and improvement in lumbar disability scores (before median = 33.3%, after median = 15.6%; p < 0.001) were observed. A multiple linear regression analysis showed that duration of pain and age of the patient predicted the disability improvement: F (2, 24) = 4.084, p < 0.030, R2 = 0.254. Discussion: Patients with sciatica may benefit from neural mobilization in combination with manual therapy for pain and lumbar disability. Longer pain duration and younger age had a negative influence on lumbar disability improvement.

Do schoolbags cause back pain in children and adolescents? A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether characteristics of schoolbag use are risk factors for back pain in children and adolescents. DATA SOURCES: Electronic searches of MEDLINE, EMBASE and CINAHL databases up to April 2016. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES: Prospective cohort studies, cross-sectional and randomised controlled trials conducted with children or adolescents. The primary outcome was an episode of back pain and the secondary outcomes were an episode of care seeking and school absence due to back pain. We weighted evidence from longitudinal studies above that from cross-sectional. The risk of bias of the longitudinal studies was assessed by a modified version of the Quality in Prognosis Studies tool. RESULTS: We included 69 studies (n=72 627), of which five were prospective longitudinal and 64 cross-sectional or retrospective. We found evidence from five prospective studies that schoolbag characteristics such as weight, design and carriage method do not increase the risk of developing back pain in children and adolescents. The included studies were at moderate to high risk of bias. Evidence from cross-sectional studies aligned with that from longitudinal studies (ie, there was no consistent pattern of association between schoolbag use or type and back pain). We were unable to pool results due to different variables and inconsistent results. SUMMARY/CONCLUSION: There is no convincing evidence that aspects of schoolbag use increase the risk of back pain in children and adolescents.

The PEDro scale had acceptably high convergent validity, construct validity, and interrater reliability in evaluating methodological quality of pharmaceutical trials.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale has been widely used to investigate methodological quality in physiotherapy randomized controlled trials; however, its validity has not been tested for pharmaceutical trials. The aim of this study was to investigate the validity and interrater reliability of the PEDro scale for pharmaceutical trials. The reliability was also examined for the Cochrane Back and Neck (CBN) Group risk of bias tool. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of data from a previous study. We considered randomized placebo controlled trials evaluating any pain medication for chronic spinal pain or osteoarthritis. Convergent validity was evaluated by correlating the PEDro score with the summary score of the CBN risk of bias tool. The construct validity was tested using a linear regression analysis to determine the degree to which the total PEDro score is associated with treatment effect sizes, journal impact factor, and the summary score for the CBN risk of bias tool. The interrater reliability was estimated using the Prevalence and Bias Adjusted Kappa coefficient and 95% confidence interval (CI) for the PEDro scale and CBN risk of bias tool. RESULTS: Fifty-three trials were included, with 91 treatment effect sizes included in the analyses. The correlation between PEDro scale and CBN risk of bias tool was 0.83 (95% CI 0.76-0.88) after adjusting for reliability, indicating strong convergence. The PEDro score was inversely associated with effect sizes, significantly associated with the summary score for the CBN risk of bias tool, and not associated with the journal impact factor. The interrater reliability for each item of the PEDro scale and CBN risk of bias tool was at least substantial for most items (>0.60). The intraclass correlation coefficient for the PEDro score was 0.80 (95% CI 0.68-0.88), and for the CBN, risk of bias tool was 0.81 (95% CI 0.69-0.88). CONCLUSION: There was evidence for the convergent and construct validity for the PEDro scale when used to evaluate methodological quality of pharmacological trials. Both risk of bias tools have acceptably high interrater reliability.

The Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire: one or more dimensions?

PURPOSE: The Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ) is one of the most recommended questionnaires to assess disability. Some previous studies support the assumption that the RMDQ is a unidimensional measure; however, recent studies have suggested that this measure has more than one domain and should be considered as a multidimensional scale. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyse the structure of the RMDQ in a large sample of patients with low back pain using two different statistical approaches. METHODS: We analysed existing datasets from previous clinical studies. We assessed unidimensionality using Rasch analysis of item fit statistics and through principle component analysis of residuals. We also performed confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to test the hypothesis of a 3-factor solution. RESULTS: We included data from 2826 patients with non-specific low back pain. The average age of all participants included was 46.4 years, and half of the participants were women (50.1%). The Rasch analysis model showed that the RMDQ is unidimensional, with only two items demonstrating slight excessive positive outfit. Results from the CFA suggested poor fit to the data of a 3-factor solution. CONCLUSIONS: We recommend that the RMDQ should still be used as a unidimensional scale for measuring disability as the only construct.

Desequilíbrio muscular dos flexores e extensores do joelho associado ao surgimento de lesão musculoesquelética relacionada à corrida: um estudo de coorte prospectivo / Muscle imbalance of flexors and extensors of the knee associated with running-related musculoskeletal injury: a prospective cohort study / Desequilibrio muscular de los flexores y extensores de la rodilla asociado con lesiones musculoesqueléticas en la carrera: un estudio de cohortes prospectivo

Resumo O objetivo deste estudo foi verificar se o desequilíbrio dos músculos do joelho pode estar associado com o surgimento de lesões em corredores. Vinte corredores fizeram uma avaliação isocinética nas velocidades de 60, 180 e 300o/s e foram acompanhados por três meses para verificar a ocorrência de lesões. Quatro atletas (21%) apresentaram lesões que envolveram a região do joelho e o desequilíbrio muscular encontrado foi associado ao surgimento de lesões, nas três velocidades testadas (p < 0,05).

Abstract The aim of this study was to determine whether a muscle imbalance of the knee is associated with running injuries. Twenty runners were evaluated by an isokinetic dynamometer at 60, 180 and 300 degrees/second. Runners were followed for three months to determine the incidence of injuries. We used the chi-square test to verify the association between muscular imbalance and the appearance of injury. Four athletes experienced injuries (21%), all registered in the knee. Muscle imbalance was associated with running-related injuries for the three tested velocities (p < 0.05). To conclude, a muscle imbalance may be associated with running injuries.

Resumen El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar si el desequilibrio muscular de los músculos de la rodilla puede estar asociado con la aparición de lesiones en corredores. Veinte corredores realizaron una evaluación isocinética a velocidades de 60, 180 y 300º/s. Se hizo un seguimiento de los participantes durante tres meses para determinar la incidencia de las lesiones. Se utilizó la prueba de chi cuadrado para determinar la asociación entre la aparición de un desequilibrio muscular y la de las lesiones. Cuatro atletas (21%) presentaron lesiones en la región de la rodilla. El desequilibrio muscular se asoció con la aparición de lesiones en las tres velocidades probadas (p < 0,05). Se concluyó que un desequilibrio muscular puede estar asociado con la aparición de lesiones en corredores.

The prevalence, risk factors, prognosis and treatment for back pain in children and adolescents: An overview of systematic reviews.

Emerging data suggest that back pain in adolescents is responsible for a substantial disability burden and consumes considerable healthcare services. Of further concern is the fact that back pain during this period of life may have health implications in adulthood. Given this, understanding the epidemiology and clinical evidence base relevant to clinicians and researchers in the field of musculoskeletal health is crucial. This chapter provides an overview and synthesis of systematic reviews that address important questions related to back pain in children and adolescents.

A consensus definition of running-related injury in recreational runners: a modified Delphi approach.

STUDY DESIGN: Delphi study. OBJECTIVE: To reach a consensus definition of running-related injury in recreational runners through a modified Delphi approach. BACKGROUND: Many studies have suggested the need for a standardized definition of running-related injury to provide uniformity to injury surveillance in running. METHODS: We invited 112 researchers from running-related injury studies identified in a previous systematic review to classify words and terms frequently used in definitions of running-related injury in an online form during 3 rounds of study. In the last round, participants were asked to approve or disapprove the consensus definition. We considered an agreement level of at least 75% to be a consensus. RESULTS: Thirty-eight participants agreed to participate in the study. The response rates were 94.7% (n = 36) for the first round, 83.3% (n = 30) for the second round, and 86.7% (n = 26) for the third round. A consensus definition of running-related injury was reached, with 80% of participants approving the following: "Running-related (training or competition) musculoskeletal pain in the lower limbs that causes a restriction on or stoppage of running (distance, speed, duration, or training) for at least 7 days or 3 consecutive scheduled training sessions, or that requires the runner to consult a physician or other health professional." CONCLUSION: The proposed standardized definition of running-related injury could assist in standardizing the definitions used in sport science research and facilitate between-study comparisons. Future studies testing the validity of the proposed consensus definition, as well as its accurate translation to other languages, are also needed.

Descriptors used to define running-related musculoskeletal injury: a systematic review.

STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review. OBJECTIVES: To systematically review the descriptors used to define running-related musculoskeletal injury and to analyze the implications of different definitions on the results of studies. BACKGROUND: Studies have developed their own definitions of running-related musculoskeletal injuries based on different criteria. This may affect the rates of injury, which can be overestimated or underestimated due to the lack of a standard definition. METHODS: Searches were conducted in the Embase, PubMed, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, LILACS, and SciELO databases, without limits on date of publication and language. Only articles that reported a definition of running-related injury were included. The definitions were classified according to 3 domains and subcategories: (1) presence of physical complaint (symptom, body system involved, region), (2) interruption of training or competition (primary sports involved, extent of injury, extent of limitation, interruption, period of injury), and (3) need for medical assistance. Spearman rank correlation was performed to evaluate the correlation between the completeness of definitions and the rates of injury reported in the studies. RESULTS: A total of 48 articles were included. Most studies described more than half of the subcategories, but with no standardization between the terms used within each category, showing that there is no consensus for a definition. The injury rates ranged between 3% and 85%, and tended to increase with less specific definitions. CONCLUSION: The descriptors commonly used by researchers to define a running-related injury vary between studies and may affect the rates of injuries. The lack of a standardized definition hinders comparison between studies and rates of injuries.

Prevalência de dor musculoesquelética em praticantes de caminhada: um estudo transversal / La prevalencia de dolor musculo esquelético en practicantes de caminatas: estudio transversal / Prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in walkers: a cross-sectional study

O presente estudo teve como objetivo verificar a prevalência de dor de origem musculoesquelética em praticantes de caminhada e os possíveis fatores associados. Trata-se de um estudo transversal, realizado por meio de um formulário aplicado aos praticantes de caminhada em parques comuns à prática desta atividade. O formulário utilizado foi composto de questões sobre informações pessoais dos participantes, a rotina da prática de caminhada, o histórico de lesões e a presença de dor musculoesquelética no momento da entrevista. Foi realizada uma análise descritiva das características dos participantes e utilizado o teste t independente, teste de Mann-Whitney e teste de qui-quadrado para a comparação dos dados entre os participantes com dor e sem dor no momento da entrevista. Foram entrevistados 136 praticantes de caminhada, sendo que a prevalência de dor musculoesquelética foi de 8%. A articulação do joelho foi a região mais acometida pela dor entre os participantes (45%). Entre as variáveis analisadas, a presença de lesões prévias nos últimos 12 meses demostrou uma associação estatisticamente significativa (p<0,05) com a presença de dor atual. Podemos concluir que a prevalência de dor musculoesquelética em praticantes de caminhada é baixa, porém esteve diretamente associada à presença de lesões prévias nos últimos 12 meses.

Este artículo tuvo el propósito de verificar la prevalencia de dolor musculo esquelético en practicantes de caminatas y los posibles factores asociados a esta práctica. Se trata de estudio transversal, que se realizó mediante un cuestionario aplicado a los practicantes de caminatas en parques y lugares que son comunes a esta actividad. El cuestionario se componía por informaciones personales de los practicantes, la rutina de la práctica, el historial de lesiones y la presencia de dolor musculo esquelético durante la entrevista. Para ello, se ha hecho un análisis descriptivo de las características de los participantes, y se han utilizados la prueba t independiente, la prueba de Mann-Whitney y la prueba de Chi Cuadrado para la comparación de los datos entre los participantes con y sin dolor en la ocasión de la entrevista. Se han entrevistados 136 practicantes de caminatas, y el 8% fue la prevalencia de dolor musculo esquelético encontrada. La zona más afectada por el dolor entre los participantes fue la articulación de rodilla (45%). Entre las variables evaluadas, se ha demostrado que la presencia de lesiones previas de los últimos 12 meses está asociada estadísticamente (p<0,05) a la presencia de dolor actual. Se concluyó que es baja la prevalencia de dolor musculo esquelético en practicantes de caminatas, sin embargo se la asocia a la presencia de lesiones previas de los últimos 12 meses.

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in walkers and the associated factors. This is a cross sectional study, conducted through a questionnaire applied to walkers in parks in which this activity is commonly seen. The form used was composed of questions about personal information, walking practice routine, injury history and the presence of musculoskeletal pain during the interview. We performed a descriptive analysis of the characteristics of the participants and used the independent t test, Mann-Whitney's test e chi-square test for the comparison of data between participants with and without pain at the moment of the interview. We interviewed 136 walkers, and the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain was 8%. The knee joint was the most affected region by pain between the participants (45%). Among the variables analyzed, the presence of previous injuries in the last 12 months showed a statistically significant association (p<0.05) with the presence of pain. We can conclude that the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in walkers was low, however, it was directly associated with previous injuries in the last 12 months.

Is the rearfoot pattern the most frequently foot strike pattern among recreational shod distance runners?

OBJECTIVE: To determine the distribution of the foot strike patterns among recreational shod runners and to compare the personal and training characteristics between runners with different foot strike patterns. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Areas of running practice in São Paulo, Brazil. PARTICIPANTS: 514 recreational shod runners older than 18 years and free of injury. OUTCOMES MEASURES: Foot strike patterns were evaluated with a high-speed camera (250 Hz) and photocells to assess the running speed of participants. Personal and training characteristics were collected through a questionnaire. RESULTS: The inter-rater reliability of the visual foot strike pattern classification method was 96.7% and intra-rater reliability was 98.9%. 95.1% (n = 489) of the participants were rearfoot strikers, 4.1% (n = 21) were midfoot strikers, and four runners (0.8%) were forefoot strikers. There were no significant differences between strike patterns for personal and training characteristics. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to demonstrate that almost all recreational shod runners were rearfoot strikers. The visual method of evaluation seems to be a reliable and feasible option to classify foot strike pattern.

What do recreational runners think about risk factors for running injuries? A descriptive study of their beliefs and opinions.

STUDY DESIGN: Qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews. OBJECTIVES: To describe the beliefs and opinions of runners about risk factors associated with running injuries. BACKGROUND: Despite the health benefits of running, a high prevalence of injury has been reported in runners. Preventive strategies for running injuries may be more successful with a better knowledge of runners' beliefs. METHODS: A semi-structured interview of recreational runners was based on the question, "What do you think can cause injuries in runners?" Analysis of the interviews was performed in 3 steps: (1) organizing the data into thematic units, (2) reading and reorganizing the data according to frequency of citation, and (3) interpreting and summarizing the data. The runner interviews were continued until no new beliefs and opinions of runners regarding injuries were being added to the data, indicating saturation of the topic. RESULTS: A total of 95 recreational runners (65 men, 30 women) between the ages of 19 and 71 years were interviewed. Of those interviewed, the average running experience was 5.5 years and approximately 45% had experienced a running-related injury in the past. The factors suggested by the runners were divided into extrinsic and intrinsic factors. The most cited extrinsic factors were "not stretching," "excess of training," "not warming up," "lack of strength," and "wearing the wrong shoes." For the intrinsic factors, the main terms cited were "not respecting the body's limitations" and "foot-type changes." CONCLUSION: Recreational runners mainly attributed injury to factors related to training, running shoes, and exceeding the body's limits. Knowing the factors identified in this study may contribute to the development of better educational strategies to prevent running injuries, as some of the runners' beliefs are not supported by the research literature.

What are the main risk factors for running-related injuries?

BACKGROUND: Despite several studies that have been conducted on running injuries, the risk factors for running-related injuries are still not clear in the literature. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to systematically review prospective cohort studies that investigated the risk factors for running injuries in general. DATA SOURCES: We conducted electronic searches without restriction of language on EMBASE (1980 to Dec 2012), PUBMED (1946 to Dec 2012), CINAHL (1988 to Dec 2012) SPORTDiscus (1977 to Dec 2012), Latin American and Caribbean Centre on Health Sciences Information (1985 to Dec 2012) and Scientific Electronic Library Online (1998 to Dec 2012) databases, using subject headings, synonyms, relevant terms and variant spellings for each database. STUDY SELECTION: Only prospective cohort studies investigating the risk factors for running-related musculoskeletal injuries were included in this review. Two independent reviewers screened each article and, if they did not reach a consensus, a third reviewer decided whether or not the article should be included. STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHODS: Year of publication, type of runners, sample size, definition of running-related musculoskeletal injury, baseline characteristics, reported risk factors and the statistical measurement of risk or protection association were extracted from the articles. A scale adapted by the authors evaluated the risk of bias of the articles. RESULTS: A total of 11 articles were considered eligible in this systematic review. A total of 4,671 pooled participants were analysed and 60 different predictive factors were investigated. The main risk factor reported was previous injury (last 12 months), reported in 5 of the 8 studies that investigated previous injuries as a risk factor. Only one article met the criteria for random selection of the sample and only six articles included a follow-up of 6 months or more. There was no association between gender and running injuries in most of the studies. LIMITATIONS: It is possible that eligible articles for this review were published in journals that were not indexed in any of the searched databases. We found a great heterogeneity of statistical methods between studies, which prevented us from performing a meta-analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The main risk factor identified in this review was previous injury in the last 12 months, although many risk factors had been investigated in the literature. Relatively few prospective studies were identified in this review, reducing the overall ability to detect risk factors. This highlights the need for more, well designed prospective studies in order to fully appreciate the risk factors associated with running.

Tratamento fisioterapêutico para epicondilite lateral: uma revisão sistemática / Physiotherapy treatment for tennis elbow: a systematic review

INTRODUÇÃO: Embora o tratamento conservador ainda seja a melhor conduta inicial para a epicondilite lateral do cotovelo, há pouca evidência científica de que o tratamento fisioterapêutico altere o curso natural da doença e seja efetiva no tratamento dessa patologia. OBJETIVO: Avaliar a efetividade e a segurança das diversas intervenções fisioterapêuticas utilizadas no tratamento conservador da epicondilite lateral. MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Foram incluídos apenas ensaios clínicos aleatorizados e quase aleatorizados que utilizaram pelo menos uma modalidade fisioterapêutica como uma das intervenções. Foi realizada uma busca nas bases de dados eletrônicos MEDLINE; Embase; LILACS e SciELO até dezembro de 2010. Não houve restrição do período de publicação dos artigos. Com o objetivo de aumentar a sensibilidade e a precisão, a estratégia de busca utilizada foi adaptada para cada base de dados. Foi utilizada a pontuação da escala PEDro para avaliação da qualidade metodológica dos ensaios clínicos aleatorizados. RESULTADOS: 26 artigos foram incluídos na revisão sistemática e a avaliação da maioria desses artigos apresentou qualidade metodológica satisfatória (6,4 pontos). Em relação aos aspectos mensurados, todos os artigos avaliaram a dor, 18 (69%) examinaram a força de preensão e 11 (42%) a função dos pacientes. Quanto à duração do acompanhamento dos pacientes apenas nove (35%) artigos realizaram acompanhamento a longo prazo. CONCLUSÃO: A melhor opção para o tratamento da epicondilite lateral parece ser a combinação de modalidades terapêuticas, o que condiz com a realidade clínica do fisioterapeuta. Porém, mais ensaios clínicos com boa qualidade metodológica são necessários para determinar a efetividade da maioria das modalidades terapêuticas encontradas.

INTRODUCTION: Although conservative treatment is still the best initial management for lateral epicondylitis, there is little scientific evidence that physical therapy change the natural history of disease and is effective for treating this condition. Objective: evaluate the effectiveness and safety of different physical therapy interventions used in the conservative treatment of lateral epicondylitis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We included only randomized controlled trials and quasi-randomized studies that used at least one modality of physical therapy as an intervention. We performed a search of electronic databases MEDLINE, Embase, LILACS and SciELO by December 2010. There was no restriction of the period and publication of articles aiming to increase the sensitivity and accuracy; the search strategy used was adapted for each database. We used the score of the PEDro scale for assessing the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials. RESULTS: 26 articles were included in the systematic review, and the evaluation of most of these articles had satisfactory methodological quality (6.4 points). Regarding the aspects measured, all articles evaluated pain, 18 (69%) examined the grip strength and 11 (42%) examined the patient's function. The duration of follow-up, only nine (35%) articles made long-term monitoring. CONCLUSION: The best option for the treatment of lateral epicondylitis seems to be a combination of therapeutic modalities, which agrees with clinical reality of the physiotherapists. However, more clinical trials with good methodological quality are needed to determine the effectiveness of most therapeutic modalities found.