Journal of athletic training
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A comparison of head movement during back boarding by motorized spine-board and log-roll techniques.
In a patient with a potential cervical spine injury, minimizing or eliminating movement at the head and neck during stabilization and transport is paramount because movement can exacerbate the condition. Any equipment or technique creating less movement will allow for a more effective and safe stabilization of an injured patient, reducing the likelihood of movement and potential secondary injury. ⋯ The MSB created less movement at the head than did the log roll in 2 planes of motion and created slightly more motion in 1 plane, although this difference was not significant. The MSB may provide emergency responders with an appropriate alternative method for stabilizing and transporting a supine injured athlete without requiring a log roll.
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Delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) describes muscle pain and tenderness that typically develop several hours postexercise and consist of predominantly eccentric muscle actions, especially if the exercise is unfamiliar. Although DOMS is likely a symptom of eccentric-exercise-induced muscle damage, it does not necessarily reflect muscle damage. Some prophylactic or therapeutic modalities may be effective only for alleviating DOMS, whereas others may enhance recovery of muscle function without affecting DOMS. ⋯ Massage was effective in alleviating DOMS by approximately 30% and reducing swelling, but it had no effects on muscle function.
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The Inter-Association Task Force for the Appropriate Care of the Spine-Injured Athlete recommends leaving a football player's helmet in place and removing the face mask from the helmet "as quickly as possible and with as little movement of the head and neck as possible." Although 2 groups have studied face-mask removal from new equipment, to our knowledge no researchers have investigated equipment that has been previously used. A full season of play may have a significant effect on football equipment and its associated hardware. Countless impacts, weather, playing surfaces, sweat, and other unforeseen or unknown variables might make the face-mask removal process more difficult on equipment that has been used. ⋯ Based on our results and previous findings that demonstrated quicker access time and reduced head movement associated with the use of the screwdriver compared with cutting tools, the former may be a good tool for face-mask removal. However, an appropriate cutting tool must be immediately available should the screwdriver fail. Helmet hardware adjacent to ear holes was more vulnerable to failure, perhaps because it is protected by less padding than the top hardware. Possible causes of the higher failure rate at school 1 are the use of hardware materials subject to rust and corrosion and differences in helmet brand; these areas warrant future research and rules consideration.