Effects of a 12-week hip abduction exercise program on the electromyographic activity of hip and knee muscles of women with patellofemoral pain: A pilot study

Aims: The purpose of our study was to compare the hip and knee muscle activity before and after a hip abduction exercise program in women with patellofemoral pain (PFP). Methods: Eleven women with PFP were included in our pre/post design study. Participants were assessed before and after 12-week hip abduction exercise program. All participants performed 6 stair climbing repetitions, 3 sets of rope jumps over 30 s and 5 sets of 8 squats to standardize the physical activity level before data collection. We recorded the electromyographic activity from gluteus medius, vastus medialis (VM) and vastus lateralis (VL) for double-legged squat with and without isometric hip abduction. Additionally, participants were asked to perform a step-down test to assess objective function (maximum number of repetitions over 30 s) and completed a clinical evaluation. Results: Longer duration of VM (Mean difference [95% CI]) = -0.97 [-1.48; -0.46], ES [effect size] = 0.66) and VL (-0.81 [-1.35; -0.27], ES = 0.54) were found after the hip abduction exercise program only for free squat. The participants also performed higher number of step-down repetitions (-3.54 [-5.84; -1.25], ES = 1.03) after the hip abduction exercise program and showed improvement in pain reports. Conclusion: A 12-week hip abduction exercise program changed the quadriceps muscle activation pattern and improved pain and objective function of women with PFP. The exercises promoted a longer VM and VL activation duration. Additionally, they promoted a clinical improvement in the patients with PFP.(AU)

Assessment of the mechanical properties of the muscle-tendon unit by supersonic shear wave imaging elastography: a review

This review aimed to describe the state of the art in muscle-tendon unit (MTU) assessment by supersonic shear wave imaging (SSI) elastography in states of muscle contraction and stretching, during aging, and in response to injury and therapeutic interventions. A consensus exists that MTU elasticity increases during passive stretching or contraction, and decreases after static stretching, electrostimulation, massage, and dry needling. There is currently no agreement regarding changes in the MTU due to aging and injury. Currently, the application of SSI for the purpose of diagnosis, rehabilitation, and physical training remains limited by a number of issues, including the lack of normative value ranges, the lack of consensus regarding the appropriate terminology, and an inadequate understanding of the main technical limitations of this novel technology.

Efeito agudo de saltos intermitentes na arquitetura muscular do Vasto Lateral em atletas de voleibol / Acute effect of intermittent jumps on the Vastus Lateralis muscle architecture in volleyball players

O aumento do ângulo de penação de fibras musculares durante contração causa uma redução da geração de força do músculo. O objetivo deste estudo foi verificar a relação entre o ângulo de penação do músculo Vasto lateral (VL) com o rendimento em um teste de saltos verticais intermitentes. Foi testado um grupo de 18 atletas do sexo masculino da Confederação Brasileira de voleibol do Exército Brasileiro. Duas imagens longitudinais do VL, a 50% do comprimento da coxa, foram adquiridas com um Ultrassom modo-B. Posteriormente, os indivíduos realizaram um teste único do tipo Counter Movement Jump para avaliar a altura máxima do salto vertical. A tarefa de saltos verticais intermitentes compreendeu quatro séries de 15 segundos de saltos máximos. Imediatamente após a tarefa, duas imagens do ângulo de penação foram novamente adquiridas na mesma região. Duas medidas do ângulo de penação foram feitas em cada imagem, totalizando oito medições por indivíduo. Os resultados mostraram que houve redução significativa da altura dos saltos no decorrer da tarefa (35,77 ± 4,67 cm; 31,94 ± 4,51 cm; 27,04 ± 3,93 cm e 22,60 ± 3,66 cm para os intervalos de 0-15 s, 15-30 s, 30-45 s e 45-60 s, respectivamente). O ângulo de penação do VL não apresentou diferença significativa antes e após a realização da tarefa (12,72 ± 2,26º e 13,71 ± 3,40º, respectivamente). A correlação de Pearson entre as medidas do ângulo de penação no pré e pós teste intermitente e entre as alturas em todos os intervalos foram fracas (0,034

Increased pennation angle of the muscle fibers during contraction causes a reduced muscle force generation. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the pennation angle of the vastus lateralis muscle (VL) with the performance of an intermittent vertical jumps test. We tested a group of 18 male athletes of the Brazilian Army Confederation of Volleyball. Two longitudinal images of the VL, at 50% of thigh length were acquired with a B-mode ultrasound. Soon after, subjects performed a Counter Movement Jump test to evaluate the maximum vertical jump height. The intermittent vertical jumps test comprised four sets of 15 s maximum jumps. Immediately after, the two images of the pennation angle were again obtained in the same region. Two pennation angle measurements were made in each image, totaling eight measurements per individual. The results of this study showed that there was a significant reduction of the jumps heights (35.77 ± 4.67 cm; 31.94 ± 4.51 cm; 27.04 ± 3.93 cm and 22.60 ± 3 66 cm intervals for 0-15 s, 15-30 s, 30-45 s and 45-60 s, respectively). The VL pennation angle did not present a significant difference before and after the test (12.72 ± 2.26 ° and 13.71 ± 3.40º respectively). The Pearson correlation between the pennation angle measurements before and after the intermittent test and among the heights in all intervals were weak (0.034

Confiabilidade das medidas de arquitetura do músculo Vasto Lateral pela ultrassonografia / Reliability of the measurements of architecture of the Vastus Lateralis muscle by ultrasonography

As medidas de confiabilidade das análises da arquitetura muscular pela ultrasonografia são importantes referências para estudos aplicados de mecânica muscular. O objetivo deste estudo foi determinar a confiabilidade das medidas de espessura muscular (EM), ângulo de penação (AP) e comprimento da fibra (CF) do músculo Vasto Lateral (VL). As imagens de ultrassom foram obtidas em um grupo (N=14; 22 ± 1,75 anos) em duas visitas (sessenta medidas por indivíduo). Foi calculado o coeficiente de correlação intraclasse (CCI), coeficiente de variação (CV) e erro típico da medida (ETM). Os resultados demonstram alta confiabilidade: CCI AP (0,83 a 0,99), EM (0,96 a 0,99) e CF (0,80 a 0,99); CV AP (3,68 a 6,34%), EM (3,12 a 3,84%) e CF (3,98 a 6,33%) e ETM AP (0,18 a 0,59º); EM (0,014 a 0,15mm) e CF (0,07 a 1,47mm). Essas medidas devem ser consideradas em estudos que analisam o impacto na arquitetura muscular em programas de condicionamento do Vasto Lateral.

Reliability of the measurements of the muscle architecture variables by ultrasound are important references for applied studies of muscle mechanics. The aim this study was to analyze the reliability of measurements of Vastus Lateralis (VL) muscle thickness (MT), pennation angle (PA) and fiber length (FL). Ultrasound images were obtained in two days (N=14, 22 ± 1,75 years) with a total of sixty measurements in each subject. Reliability was determined by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), coefficient of variation (CV) and typical error of measurement (TEM). Results show high reliability: MT (0,96 a 0,99), PA (0,83 a 0,99) and FL (0,80 a 0,99) ICC; MT (3,12 a 3,84%), PA (3,68 a 6,34%) and FL (3,98 a 6,33%) CV; MT (0,014 a 0,15mm), PA (0,18 a 0,59º) and FL (0,07 a 1,47mm) TEM. These measures should be considered in studies of the impact of conditioning programs in the architecture of the vastus lateralis muscle.

Preliminary factor analysis of the O'Kelly Women Beliefs Scale in a US sample / Análisis factorial preliminar de la O'Kelly Women Beliefs Scale en una muestra estadounidense

Using a Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy framework, the O'Kelly Women Beliefs Scale (O'Kelly, in press) was originally constructed in Australia to measure sex-role beliefs women may develop through sex-role stereotyping. Factor analysis of the 92 original items showed that 64 items loaded into a single component that accounted for 18.2% of the variance in a sample of 974 Australian women. The present exploratory study examined the psychometric properties of the OWBS in a sample of 202 women born and living in the US. A varimax rotation with cutoff eigenvalues of 3, showed that 37 items loaded into 3 components which accounted for 58.48% of the variance. The items were subsequently grouped into two factors: Irrationality, with a total of 27 items was created by merging component 1 and 3 (Pearson's r = 0.8 between them), and Rationality, with the 10 items from component 2. Analyses indicated a Cronbach's alpha of 0.91 for Factor 1, and a Cronbach's alpha 0.74 for Factor 2. Results indicate that this version of the instrument may be used to evaluate both the rational and irrational content of sex-role beliefs of women born in the US.

En el contexto de la Terapia Racional Emotivo-Conductual, se desarrolló la O'Kelly Women Beliefs Scale (OWBS) construída originalmente en Australia, para evaluar las creencias sobre el rol sexual que las mujeres pueden desarrollar como estereotipo. En una muestra de 974 mujeres australianas, el análisis factorial de los 92 reactivos originales mostró que 64 de ellos cargaron en un solo componente que explica el 18.2 % de la varianza total. El objetivo del presente estudio exploratorio es determinar la estructura factorial del OWBS, en 202 mujeres nacidas en E.E. U.U. La rotación Varimax con punto de corte de autovalor en 3, arrojó que 37 ítems cargan en tres componentes que explican el 58.48 % de la varianza total. Los reactivos se agruparon en dos factores: Irracionalidad, con un total de 27 reactivos que se integraron en los componentes 1 y 3 (r = 0.8) y Racionalidad, con 10 reactivos integrados en el componente 2. El alfa de Cronbach fue de 0.91 para el Factor 1 y de 0.74 para el Factor 2. Los resultados indican que esta versión del instrumento puede ser usada para evaluar tanto el contenido racional como el irracional de las creencias sobre el rol sexual de las mujeres nacidas en E.E. U.U.

Aculturación y diferencias en las creencias irracionales sobre el rol femenino tradicional (O’Kelly Women Beliefs Scale) en mujeres colombianas residentesen su país de origen y en Estados Unidos / Acculturation and differences in the irrational beliefs about traditional female roles (O’Kelly Women Beliefs Scale) in Colombian women living in Colombia and U. S. A

La Escala de Creencias de las Mujeres de O’Kelly (O’Kelly Women Beliefs Scale., O’Kelly, en prensa; Ellis, 1985) fue aplicada a colombianas residentes en Cali, Colombia, colombianas residentes en el noreste de los Estados Unidos y sus contrapartes estadounidenses (20 madres y 20 hijas mayores de 17 años en cada grupo). Se encontró que existen diferencias transculturales en los puntajes totales de los tres grupos. Comparaciones posthoc (LSD) indicaron que las diferencias significativas se encuentran en las hijas colombianas residentes en Estados Unidos, comparadas con las madres colombianas residentes en Colombia y las madres e hijas estadounidenses. No existen diferencias entre madres e hijas colombianas residentes en Estados Unidos. Los resultados sugieren que el patrón deaculturación de los colombianos en los Estados Unidos es el de asimilación al país de adopción conservando aspectos de la tradición y la cultura del país de origen.

The O’Kelly Women Beliefs Scale (O’Kelly, in press) was given to 120 females: Colombians living in Colombia, and Colombians, and their non- Hispanic US counterparts living in the USA (20 mother-daughter pairs in each group). An ANOVA indicated significant cross-cultural differences among the groups, where posthoc comparisons (LSD) revealed they were largely due to differences between Colombian daughters in the USA and three subgroups: Colombian mothers inColombia, non- Hispanic US mothers, and non- Hispanic US daughters. Results suggest that the acculturation patternof Colombians to the USA seems to be one of assimilation to the new culture keeping several aspects of the traditions and costumes of the country of origin.

Perfil de lípidos y lipoproteínas en inmigrantes chinos residentes en Costa Rica / Lipid and lipoprotein profile of Chinese immigrants living in Costa Rica

The lipid profile and food pattern of 50 Chinese immigrants living in San JosÚ, Costa Rica were studied during 1999. The results showed that 35 of the immigrants had high levels of total cholesterol (> or = 5.16 mmol/L) and 51 had high concentrations of LDL-Cholesterol (> or = 2.84 mmol/L). Moreover, 36 of them had high levels of triglycerides (> 1.69 mmol/L) and only the 15 had low concentrations of HDL-cholesterol (< or = 0.90 mmol/L). The ratio of men with high levels of total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides and low levels of HDL-cholesterol was larger that the one in women; although this difference was not significant. 41 of the studied population presented Castelli's Indexes (TC/HDL-C) above 4.5. In general, around 80 of the Chinese immigrants consume vegetables 5-6 times/week and 50 consume fruits with the same frequency. A high percentage of the immigrants eat food with animal protein more than 3 times/week and around 23 eat frequently snacks and fast foods. Our data suggest that the Chinese immigrants still keep some characteristics of their nutritional culture. Nevertheless, they have changed their food pattern to a more atherogenic one. It's important that nutritionists and other health professionals evaluate in detail the factors associated with the change in the food pattern of the immigrants, in order to avoid an increase in the rates of morbi-mortality of coronary disease in this group of population.