Effect of Kinesiology Taping on Upper Torso Mobility and Shoulder Pain and Disability in US Masters National Championship Swimmers: An Exploratory Study.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to observe changes in shoulder pain and upper-extremity functional movement after kinesiology taping (KT) in competitive swimmers. METHODS: Seventy-six healthy participants competing in the US Masters Swimming 2017 National Championship participated in the study. Participants performed functional movement of shoulder flexion along with Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand index assessments for the shoulder before and 30 minutes after application of KT. RESULTS: A change in the functional movement assessment was observed after KT application when compared to the pre-KT application (33.56 ± 1.39 cm vs 35.35 ± 1.52 cm, P < .001). A statistical significant change for pain and disability scores of 2.17 was observed (12.29 ± 1.22 vs 10.12 ± 1.16, P < .01). CONCLUSION: For the participants in this study, KT changed shoulder pain and active functional movement scores significantly in swimmers.

Intra- and interday reproducibility of high-flow-mediated constriction response in young adults.

BACKGROUND: Previously, we have demonstrated that high-flow-mediated constriction (H-FMC) of the brachial artery has been shown to negatively affect flow-mediated dilation (FMD). However, the reproducibility of an H-FMC response is unknown. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the intra- and interday reproducibility of H-FMC in young adults. METHODS: Thirty young adults (15 male, 15 female; 24 ± 3 years) were assessed for H-FMC reproducibility via high-resolution ultrasound imaging of the brachial artery during and after forearm occlusion of a normal FMD procedure. Two vascular assessments were conducted for all participants during two separate visits with a minimum of 7 days in between. H-FMC was characterized as the greatest 10-s average constriction occurring after 3-s postocclusion compared to baseline brachial artery diameter and considered present if the percent change was <-0·1%. RESULTS: Of the 120 total vascular assessments performed in this study, 98 of the assessments (80·3%) displayed an H-FMC. H-FMC diameter was not statistically different for intraday comparisons for visit 1 (P = 0·39) or visit 2 (P = 0·55) or interday comparisons between the first (P = 0·61) or second (P = 0·10) assessments. H-FMC percentage was also not statistically different for intra-day comparison for visit 1 (P = 0·94) or visit 2 (P = 0·15) or interday comparisons between the first (P = 0·63) or second (P = 0·16) assessments. CONCLUSION: These data are supportive of H-FMC being reproducible in young adults and included in future FMD studies. The impact of H-FMC on future CVD risk and development warrants evaluation.

Intra- and inter-day reproducibility of low-flow mediated constriction response in young adults.

PURPOSE: When assessing brachial endothelial function by reactive hyperaemia, stopping blood flow creates a period of low-flow-mediated constriction (L-FMC). As little is known about how this parameter influences flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD), the purpose of this study was to better understand this relationship and to determine the intra- and interday reproducibility of brachial L-FMC. METHODS: Brachial L-FMC and FMD were measured on 26 healthy, young adults (13 males, 13 females; 24·6 ± 2·7 years). Each participant had two assessments conducted on two separate visits, separated by a minimum of seven days. Brachial artery baseline diameter was imaged during rest. Continuous imaging of the artery was performed during the last 20 s of cuff-occlusion to 180 s postcuff release. An L-FMC was considered present if the relative change from pre-occlusion baseline to L-FMC artery diameter was less than -0·1%. RESULTS: Overall, there was a strong, positive correlation between increased brachial L-FMC and blunted FMD (visit 1 test 1: r = 0·758, P<0·001; visit 1 test 2: r = 0·706, P<0·001; visit 2 test 1: r = 0·836, P<0·001; visit 2 test 2: r = 0·857, P<0·001). The reproducibility of intra- and interday L-FMC diameter was intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) = 0·627, coefficient of variation (CV) = 54·4% and ICC = 0·734, CV = 43·5%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Vasoconstriction to low-flow conditions influences the subsequent maximal dilation during reactive hyperaemia. However, L-FMC is variable as evidenced by the weak intra- and interday reproducibility of the measure. Further research should study brachial L-FMC reproducibility among varying populations and the implications L-FMC has on the interpretation of FMD results.

Validation of a three-dimensional body scanner for body composition measures.

The accuracy of an infrared three-dimensional (3D) body scanner in determining body composition was compared against hydrostatic weighing (HW), bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), and anthropometry. A total of 265 adults (119 males; age = 22.1 ± 2.5 years; body mass index = 24.5 ± 3.9 kg/m2) had their body fat percent (BF%) estimated from 3D scanning, HW, BIA, skinfolds, and girths. A repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated significant differences among methods (p < 0.001). Multivariate ANOVA indicated a significant main effect of sex and method (p < 0.001), with a non-significant interaction (p = 0.101). Bonferroni post-hoc comparisons identified that BF% from 3D scanning (18.1 ± 7.8%) was significantly less than HW (22.8 ± 8.5%, p < 0.001), BIA (20.1 ± 9.1%, p < 0.001), skinfolds (19.7 ± 9.7%, p < 0.001), and girths (21.2 ± 10.4%, p < 0.001). The 3D scanner decreased in precision with increasing adiposity, potentially resulting from inconsistences in the 3D scanner's analysis algorithm. A correction factor within the algorithm is required before infrared 3D scanning can be considered valid in measuring BF%.

High-flow-mediated constriction in adults is not influenced by biomarkers of cardiovascular and metabolic risk.

PURPOSE: During reactive hyperemia, the brachial artery in some individuals constricts prior to dilation. Our aim was to describe the frequency of high-flow-mediated constriction (H-FMC) in adults, and its relationship to body composition and biomarkers of cardiovascular and metabolic risk. METHODS: Two hundred forty-six adults (124 male, 122 female; 36 ± 7 years old) were assessed for H-FMC via sonographic imaging of the brachial artery. Blood pressure, glucose, insulin, lipids, and body composition assessed via dual energy X-ray absorptiometry were collected. H-FMC was characterized as a 10-second average of maximal postocclusion constriction. Independent t test was used to compare H-FMC versus non-H-FMC individuals. RESULTS: H-FMC was observed in approximately 69% of adult participants (54 obese, 57 overweight, and 59 normal weight). Total body mass (82.3 ± 17.5 versus 76.3 ± 16.3 kg, p = 0.012), fat mass (27.7 ± 11.5 versus 23.8 ± 10.5 kg, p = 0.012), body mass index (27.7 ± 4.9 versus 26.1 ± 5.0 kg/m2 , p = 0.018), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (2.41 ± 1.03 versus 2.09 ± 0.72, p = 0.007) were higher in H-FMC than in non-H-FMC individuals. Flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) (6.12 ± 3.48 versus 8.09 ± 3.02%, p < 0.001) was lower in H-FMC subjects. However, there was no difference in brachial artery dilation between groups (7.57 ± 3.69 versus 8.09 ± 3.02%, p = 0.250) when H-FMC was added to FMD. CONCLUSIONS: Increased body mass, fat mass, and body mass index were associated with a greater H-FMC. When H-FMC was present, the FMD response to reactive hyperemia was significantly lower. Because H-FMC has been observed to negatively affect FMD response to reactive hyperemia, we suggest that H-FMC should be noted when analyzing and interpreting FMD data. H-FMC may be an ancillary measure of endothelial health. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 45:35-42, 2017.

Presence of a high-flow-mediated constriction phenomenon prior to flow-mediated dilation in normal weight, overweight, and obese children and adolescents.

PURPOSE: When assessing vasomotor endothelial function by reactive hyperemia, the brachial artery, in some individuals, constricts immediately before beginning to dilate following cuff release. We call this response high-flow-mediated constriction (H-FMC). The aim of this study was to describe the rate of the H-FMC during reactive hyperemia in children and adolescents throughout a range of body mass index (BMI) values, and to investigate differences in flow-mediated dilation (FMD), cardiovascular, and anthropometric measures between subjects with and without H-FMC. METHODS: FMD was assessed in 136 children and adolescents (61 male, 75 female; 13 ± 3 years) by sonographic imaging of the brachial artery. H-FMC was characterized as the lowest point from the baseline brachial artery diameter immediately following reactive cuff release. Independent t tests were used to compare subjects with and without H-FMC. RESULTS: H-FMC was observed in 91 of the 136 participants (66.9%). No significant difference was found between H-FMC and non-H-FMC subjects for age (p = 0.602), gender (p = 0.767), height (p = 0.227), or weight (p = 0.171). BMI percentile was nonsignificantly higher (91.8 ± 4.9th versus 84.6 ± 22.8th percentile, p = 0.057) and FMD was significantly lower (5.43 ± 3.41% versus 8.05 ± 3.97%, p < 0.001) in H-FMC than in non-H-FMC subjects. Adding H-FMC to FMD produced no significant difference between H-FMC and non-H-FMC individuals (8.03 ± 3.27% versus 8.05 ± 3.97%, p = 0.977). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 67% of participants demonstrated an H-FMC during reactive hyperemia. BMI percentile was nonsignificantly higher and FMD was significantly lower in children and adolescents who displayed this phenomenon.

Comparison of baseline brachial artery measurements and effect on peak flow-mediated dilation.

BACKGROUND: Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) following reactive hyperaemia can use different time-point measures for baseline diameter. The aim of this study is to compare preocclusion, occlusion and postocclusion baseline brachial artery measurements on the calculation of peak FMD. STUDY DESIGN: Ultrasound imaging of the brachial artery following reactive hyperaemia was conducted in 418 children and 533 adults. Baseline brachial artery measures were a 10-s average before (preocclusion), during (occlusion) and after (postocclusion) hyperaemia. Peak FMD was defined as the greatest percent change from baseline to the peak brachial artery diameter following reactive hyperaemia. RESULTS: Preocclusion, occlusion and postocclusion baseline measures of brachial artery diameter were not significantly different in children (3·15 ± 0·51, 3·14 ± 0·50 versus 3·11 ± 0·50 mm, P = 0·179) or adults (3·81 ± 0·72, 3·81 ± 0·73 versus 3·79 ± 0·73 mm, P = 0·201). Peak FMD values were not significantly different when calculated from preocclusion, occlusion or postocclusion baselines in children (6·77 ± 5·78, 6·93 ± 4·03 versus 7·85 ± 3·62%, P = 0·208) or adults (6·07 ± 5·53, 6·14 ± 3·94 versus 6·62 ± 3·70%, P = 0·266). CONCLUSION: We found no difference in FMD regardless of the baseline brachial artery diameter used in children and adults. Therefore, compilation of data and comparison of results from studies utilizing different measures of baseline brachial diameter may be able to be conducted.