One hundred-eighty players in a male soccer senior division of 12 teams were observed prospectively for 1 year to study the risk of soccer injuries in relation to exposure and to establish the connection between training, injuries, and team success. Totally, more than 100 hours of practice were analyzed. All injuries were examined by the same orthopaedic surgeon. On the average, each team played 36 games and had 95 practice sessions with 66% attendance of selected players. A direct correlation was noted between team success and the amount of training. Teams with more than average training showed a diminishing number of injuries. A high practice-to-game ratio seems to be advantageous. One injury every third game and every ninth practice session was documented. For the individual player the incidence of injury was 7.6/1000 practice hours and 16.9/1000 game hours. The incidence of injury was higher at training camps. Correlation was noted between the design of the training and the incidence of injuries. The duration of warming up seemed adequate, but its content did not appear to be satisfactory from a clinical point of view. Redesign of the warm-up with more emphasis on flexibility and the addition of a cool-down is suggested to reduce injuries.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of warming up, massage, and stretching on range of motion and muscle strength in the lower extremity.

The effects of general warming up, massage, and stretching on ranges of motion (ROM) and strength of quadriceps and hamstring muscles were measured in eight male volunteers. Thigh muscle strength was not influenced by the experimental procedures. Stretching resulted in a significantly increased range of hip flexion/extension, hip abduction, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion; the effect was significantly greater than that obtained by massage and warming up separately or combined. Only ankle dorsiflexion was influenced by massage or warming up, whereas stretching affected all muscle groups tested. Stretching was, therefore, superior to the other methods tested for increasing flexibility in the lower extremity.

Biomechanical Phenomena↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The effect of diagnostic and operative arthroscopy and open meniscectomy on muscle strength in the thigh.

In this study we measured the effect on the muscle strength in the thigh in connection with diagnostic arthroscopy with central approach, arthroscopy with arthroscopic operation of bucket-handle ruptures, flap tears, total arthroscopic meniscectomy, and open meniscectomy. Thirty-seven patients were tested preoperatively and 1, 4 and 8 weeks postoperatively with a Cybex II isokinetic dynamometer. The extensor muscles of the knee joint were most affected. The flexor muscles were generally recovered in all groups within a month. Diagnostic arthroscopy and arthroscopic operations for bucket-handle ruptures showed no significant effect on the thigh muscle torque. With the other arthroscopic operations there was a 40% decrease of quadriceps function 1 week after operation. After 8 weeks normal function returned. Open meniscectomy had a much more negative effect on the quadriceps muscle with a decrease of about 70% after 1 week. After 8 weeks, the rehabilitation was still not complete.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Laser-induced pain for quantitative comparison of intravenous regional anesthesia using saline, morphine, lidocaine, or prilocaine.

The significance of ischemia-producing intravenous regional anesthesia (IVRA) was investigated using isotonic saline for injection. The possible analgesic effect of morphine was tested by injecting 40 ml morphine hydrochloride 0.01% for IVRA. Analgesia was evaluated subjectively by measuring the thresholds (warmth and pain) to laser stimulation and objectively by measuring the brain potentials (amplitude and latency) evoked by brief laser stimuli. Morphine and saline produced total pain alleviation after 30 minutes of IVRA. A control study was performed in which 40 ml lidocaine 0.5% and 40 ml prilocaine 0.5% were used for IVRA. This caused an inhibition of the laser-induced pain after 5-10 minutes. After the deflation of the cuff, the thresholds and the brain potentials recovered rapidly. No differences in the efficacy of lidocaine or prilocaine were observed. It is concluded that 30 minutes of tourniquet application is sufficient to cause analgesia and that morphine does not provide more adequate analgesia than saline when used for IVRA.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Bronchodilator effects of terbutaline and theophylline alone and in combination in patients with chronic obstructive lung disease.

Thirteen patients with severe partially reversible chronic obstructive lung disease received long-term treatment with a sustained-release preparation of theophylline and a beta 2-agonist (terbutaline) alone and in combination. Combination therapy induced significantly greater bronchodilation than treatment with terbutaline alone in the recommended dose. In 9 out of 13 patients the peak flows were higher during combination therapy than during theophylline treatment alone, but this did not reach statistical significance. Only mild side effects were observed.

Adult↗