Physical activity; exercise and sports as therapy in human hypertension

The concept and practice of treatment of hypertension without medication is seen as an alternative to problems that arise with the use of drug therapy. Weight loss programmes; salt restriction; relaxation therapy; and pysical activity and exercises are some of teh alternative non-pharmacological treatment modalitiets. The role of physical activity and exercise as non-drug therapy has receivedf tgreat attention in the recent past. Hypertensives have lowererr cardiac output and stroke volumes; higher heart rates; and a markedly higher peripheral resistance than normotensives at the same intensity of physical activity. Even patietns with mildly elevated resting blood pressures have a markedly increased myocardial oxiygen demand during exercise; since demand is determined not only by the pressure load but also by teh degree of ventricular hypertropy. Physical activity and exercise leads to a rise in teh systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Teh rise depends on the nature and degree of stress. In patients with severe hypertension the systolic blood pressure might rise to 300 mm hg as compared to 180-200 mm hg in normal people. Some studies have shown that participation in aerobic training can lower blood pressure especially in the stages I and II. However; when presecribing physical activities; isometric exercises should be avoided. Thus it is imperative to examine teh effect of physical activity on hypertension. This article reviews the realtionship between physical activity; exercise; sports and human hypertension

A study of the Pattern of Injuries during the Rugby World Cup Tournament Held in Nairobi

Rugby; like other contact sports; is associated with injuries. We set out to investigate all injuries that led either to a temporary stoppage of the game and/or substitution of a player during the Rugby World Cup pre-qualifying tournament. A total of six matches were played involving the Arabian Gulf; Kenya; Namibia and Zimbabwe. We recorded a total of 47 injuries; giving an injury rate of eight per match. The number of injuries decreased from 38.3in the first matches to 23.4in the final ones. The majority of the injuries affected soft tissues; the most serious of them being a concussion. Anatomically; the lower limbs suffered the majority of injuries (46.81) followed by the head; trunk and upper limbs with 21.29; 17.03and 12.78respectively. Slightly more injuries occurred during the defensive actions (53.19) than offensive (46.81) ones. More injuries occurred in thee second half (61.70) than the first (38.3). Some of our findings are in agreement with those of earlier studies. However; further investigations are necessary to establish a clear cut pattern of injuries in this sport