Physical activity, anxiety, depression, and coping in Turkish men and women during the first wave of COVID-19.

A need exists to better understand the relationships between COVID-19, coping behaviors, physical activity and stress, and COVID-19's impact on way of life. A cross-sectional study design was used to examine adult physical activity, hope, depression, anxiety, and coping status by gender during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to determine the impact of these variables on the coping process. The study also examined the effect of gender on the relation between physical activity and dependent variables. A global survey instrument was used in this study, including 1,400 Turkish adults. This study identified significant gender-based differences regarding physical activity, hope, depression, anxiety, and coping status of adults, although no significant gender-based difference was found regarding hope scores. Furthermore, physical activity directly influenced coping (ß = 0.10), hope (ß = 0.12), and anxiety (ß = -0.08). Hope directly and positively influenced coping (ß = 0.45) and directly and negatively influenced anxiety (ß = -0.25) and depression (ß = -0.28). Moreover, gender did not directly affect physical activity, but it was associated with decreased coping and increased depression and anxiety. Finally, gender had no effect on the relation between physical activity and hope, coping, depression, and anxiety (p > 0.01). These outcomes support the critical importance of physical activity and hope when coping with COVID-19 regardless of gender.

Comparison of external load measures per minute based on match seasonal periods and playing positions of a soccer Turkish super league team.

BACKGROUND: Turkish Super League teams need more information about the external load. Considering the specific country and the coaches' philosophies, the purpose of this study was to compare the external match load of a Turkish Super League team considering the different playing positions and in-season periods. METHODOLOGY: A longitudinal study design was employed by observing 29 official matches of the same team. A total of fifteen players, consisting of five defenders, five midfielders, and five forwards, were analyzed using the Sentio Sports Optical Tracking System. The following outcomes were extracted in each match: total distance (TD), walking [from 0 to 7.2 km/h], jogging [from 7.2 to 14.4 km/h], running [from 14.4 to 20 km/h], high speed running (HSR) [> 20 km/h], metabolic power (MP), maximum deceleration (Decmax) [Dec < -3 m/s2], total deceleration distance (Dectotal), maximum acceleration (Accmax) [Acc > 3 m/s2], and total acceleration distance (Acctotal). Statistical analysis consisted of ANOVA and Bonferroni correction post hoc tests. RESULTS: The main results showed that all variables were similar between periods of the season (p > 0.05) except for walking (p = 0.021 witha large effect size), which revealed lower values in the mid-season period. When analyzing periods of the season considering playing positions, there were several significant results for TD, walking, jogging, running, HSR, Dectotal and Acctotal (p < 0.05, with small to large effects). A tendency for higher values was noted in the mid and end-season. Considering the playing positions comparisons, midfielders showed higher values than defenders for TD, MP, Dectotal and Acctotal (p < 0.05 with large effect for all). Midfielders also showed higher values than forwards for TD, jogging, Dectotal and Acctotal (p < 0.05 with a large effect for all). CONCLUSIONS: The present study emphasizes the significance of analyzing data based on minute, playing position, and season period. Findings reveal that defenders consistently displayed the lowest values in all external load measures during matches compared to other positions throughout the season. Furthermore, midfielders demonstrated a higher activity profile during the initial and middle stages of the season compared to other positions, with a slight tendency to decrease load towards the end of the season.

Relative age effect and performance in elite youth male basketball.

The aims of the study were to (i) assess the Relative Age Effect (RAE) on elite young male basketball players, (ii) to analyze whether there is a difference between birth quarters (BQ) according to their minutes played and efficiency ratings as individual performance parameters and, (iii) to analyze the relationship between team efficiency, team success, and RAE with a new approach. The research was conducted on 678 players (Age:15.84 ± 0.42) from 53 teams in six different tournaments (from 2014 to 2019). Although, chi-square test showed that more players were born in first BQ than in all other BQs (p < 0.05), no significant difference between BQs and performance measures was found (p > 0.05). However, a relationship between team RAE score, tournament ranking, and team efficiency score was found (p < 0.05). Furthermore, there was a relationship between tournament rankings and team RAE rankings (p < 0.05). While players born in the first months of the year were more likely to be selected for the national youth teams, performance parameters did not show any significant difference when compared to other players who were born later in the same year. However, results showed that teams that have a higher number of athletes who were born in the earlier months of a year showed higher achievement in the tournaments.

The associations of transformational leadership and team cohesion on the psychological health of young football players through basic psychological needs.

The present study examined the associations of transformational leadership behaviors and team cohesion with the psychological health (life satisfaction, positive and negative affect, and burnout) of athletes and the indirect relationship of basic psychological needs. The sample consisted of 252 (boys) players aged between 13 and 15. The model data fit was also verified. The results demonstrated that the transformational leadership behaviors of coaches were indirectly related to athletes' psychological health. Team cohesion was related to athletes' psychological health both directly and indirectly. Basic psychological needs played an indirect role in these relationships. Transformational leadership and team cohesion have important implications for the healthy development of young people.

Defining the experiences of adolescent patients with multiple sclerosis in transition from pediatric care to adult care.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the experiences of patients aged 18-24 years who were diagnosed with multiple sclerosis before the age of eighteen, during the transition from pediatric care to adult care. METHODS: This research was in the type of phenomenological qualitative research. Focus group interviews were conducted between December 2020 and October 2021 with seventeen participants who had been diagnosed with multiple before the age of eighteen, aged 18-24, voluntarily having agreed to participate in the study. The views of the participants were analyzed with Maxqda Plus v10 data analysis software, and thematic coding was created by the researchers. RESULTS: Of the participants, 58.9% were female, 76.5% had their first attack after the age of 13, and it was determined that 64.7% of them took oral tablets for therapeutic purposes. As a result of the content analysis; four thematic codes emerged: (a) Perceptions of the Illness and Pediatric Clinic Before Transition, (b) Perceptions of the Disease and Adult Clinic After Transition to the Adult Clinic, (c) Expectations from the Clinic They Received Service from During Their Childhood, (d) Expectations from the Clinic They Used in Adulthood. CONCLUSION: This study revealed that individuals with multiple sclerosis did not receive any medical care regarding the transition from pediatric clinics to adult clinics. Describing the experiences of young adult patients with multiple sclerosis in pediatric clinics and their experiences in the transition to adult clinics allows for the definition of comprehensive, individualized and transitional nursing interventions.

Classified metabolic power-based measures in professional football players: comparison between playing positions and match period.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was (i) provide reference data of metabolic power-based measures during professional football matches; and to (ii) analyze the between-position and between-halves differences of power-based measures during professional football matches. METHODS: Forty-six professional male players from two Turkish Super League teams were observed during two seasons, and 58 matches were analyzed. Total distance, equivalent distance, Low Power (LP), Intermediate Power (IP), High Power (HP), Elevated Power (EP), Max Power (MP) and power metabolic measures Pmet at different match moments were considered. RESULTS: Significant between-position differences were observed for IP (p: 0.000; d: 0.284), HP (p ≤ 0.001; d = 0.45), EP (p ≤ 0.001; d = 0.44), and for MP (p ≤ 0.001; d = 0.56), with the central defenders (CD) showing the lower values, and the central midfielders (CM) showing the higher values for the overall measures. CONCLUSION: Power-based measures are dependent on playing positions. While the CD have lower Pmet values when compared to all positions, the CM have the greatest values. Training and recovery strategies must be ensured for CM players, especially those who have greater match participation.

Promoting Physical Activity during School Closures Imposed by the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Physical Education Teachers' Behaviors in France, Italy and Turkey.

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically reduced physical activity (PA) behaviors of many people. Physical education (PE) is considered one of the privileged instruments to promote youths' PA. We aimed to investigate the effects of lockdown on PE teachers' behaviors promoting their students' out-of-school PA and differences between three European countries. A sample of 1146 PE teachers (59.5% females) from France, Italy, and Turkey answered an online questionnaire about guiding students to engage in out-of-school PA, helping them to set PA goals, encouraging in self-monitoring PA, the pedagogical formats of these behaviors and feedback asked to students. RM-MANCOVAs were performed with a two-time (before and during the lockdown), three country (France, Italy, Turkey), two gender factorial design, using teaching years and perceived health as covariates. A significant multivariate main effect time × country × gender (p < 0.001) was reported for the behaviors promoting students' PA, with French and Italian teachers increasing some behaviors, while Turkish teachers showing opposite trends. Significant multivariate main effects time × country were found for formats supporting the behaviors (p < 0.001) and for asked feedback formats (p < 0.001). The massive contextual change imposed by lockdown caused different reactions in teachers from the three countries. Findings are informative for PA promotion and PE teachers' education.

Inguinal approach in adult hydrocele surgery: preliminary randomized study.

This prospective study compared the effects of scrotal and inguinal approaches in hydrocele repair. Thirty-two adult patients, enrolled between January 1994 and May 2000, were randomly assigned to an inguinal (n=17) or a scrotal (n=15) approach. Scrotal size (at the surgical site) was measured preoperatively and postoperatively. Edema, infection, and hematoma formation were evaluated on the first, second, and third days after operation. Hematoma occurred in 4 patients in the scrotal approach group and in 1 patient in the inguinal approach group. Scrotal size was significantly smaller in the scrotal approach group on all postoperative evaluation days. Three months after surgery, all patients in both groups were free of hydrocele. The inguinal approach is a feasible option in the surgical treatment of adults with hydrocele; it results in less edema than is noted with the scrotal approach. Larger studies are needed to confirm these results.