Journal of athletic training
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Bleakley CM, Costello JT, Glasgow PD. Should athletes return to sport after applying ice? A systematic review of the effect of local cooling on functional performance. Sports Med. 2012; 42(1):69-87. ⋯ The authors suggested that the available evidence indicates that athletic performance may be adversely affected when athletes return to play immediately after cryotherapy treatments. Many of the included studies used variable cooling protocols, reflecting differences in time, temperature, and mode of cryotherapy. The majority of the included studies used cryotherapy for at least 20 minutes. However, when considering an immediate return to activity, this cooling duration may not be clinically relevant because cryotherapy applications during practice and competitions usually last less than 20 minutes. When immediate return to activity occurs after cryotherapy, short-duration cold applications or progressive warm-ups should be implemented to prevent a deleterious effect on functional performance.
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The knee joint is the second most commonly injured body site after the ankle and the leading cause of sport-related surgeries. Knee injuries, especially of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), are among the most economically costly sport injuries, frequently requiring expensive surgery and rehabilitation. ⋯ Anterior cruciate ligament injury rates vary by sport, sex, and type of exposure. Recognizing such differences is important when evaluating the effectiveness of evidence-based, targeted prevention efforts.
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Motion in the unstable cervical spine when transferring a patient positioned prone to a spine board.
Two methods have been proposed to transfer an individual in the prone position to a spine board. Researchers do not know which method provides the best immobilization. ⋯ We saw a slight difference in the motion measured during the 2 prone logrolling techniques tested, with less lateral-bending and anteroposterior motion produced with the logroll push than the pull technique. Therefore, we recommend adopting the push technique as the preferred spine-boarding maneuver when a patient is found in the prone position. Researchers should continue to seek improved methods for performing prone spine-board transfers to further decrease the motion produced in the unstable spine.
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Calvert E, Chambers GK, Regan W, Hawkins RH, Leith JM. Special physical examination tests for superior labrum anterior-posterior shoulder injuries are clinically limited and invalid: a diagnostic systematic review. J Clin Epidemiol. 2009;62(5):558-563. ⋯ The literature currently used as a reference for teaching in medical schools and continuing education lacks the necessary validity to help rule in or out a SLAP lesion or biceps tendon involvement. Based on the results from the systematic review conducted by Calvert et al, no tests clinically diagnose a SLAP lesion. This is a cause for concern as magnetic resonance imaging or magnetic resonance arthrography, which are frequently used to assess a possible SLAP lesion, may also have diagnostic flaws and may be cost prohibitive. Performing arthroscopy on every patient to rule the condition in or out is unethical, especially if a SLAP lesion is not present. More rigorous validity studies should be conducted for SLAP lesion physical examination tests using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS) tool or Standards for Reporting Diagnostic Accuracy (STARD) criteria.
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Adding sodium (Na(+)) to drinks improves rehydration and ad libitum fluid consumption. Clinicians (∼25%) use pickle juice (PJ) to treat cramping. Scientists warn against PJ ingestion, fearing it will cause rapid plasma volume restoration and thereby decrease thirst and delay rehydration. Advice about drinking PJ has been developed but never tested. ⋯ The rationale behind advice about drinking PJ is questionable. Participants drank more, not less, after PJ ingestion, and plasma variables and perceptual indicators were similar after PJ and DIW ingestion. Pickle juice did not inhibit short-term rehydration.