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Acute and Acclimated Effects of Wearing Compression Garments on Balance Control in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

You-jou Hung, Frederick Couverette, Jeffrey Hamon, and Dustyn Willard

Falls are very serious health concerns among older adults. Providing additional cutaneous and proprioceptive feedback to older adults may enhance their balance control and therefore reduce the incidents of falls. This study aimed to investigate the acute and acclimated effect of wearing waist-to-above-ankle compression garments (CGs) on balance control in community-dwelling older adults. Thirty-one older adults participated in the study. The Timed Up and Go, Berg Balance Scale, and the Fall Risk Test of the Biodex Balance System were used in a random order to examine balance control in three testing sessions 1 week apart. Results indicated wearing CGs had a significant impact on the Timed Up and Go test (p < .001), Berg Balance Scale (p = .001), and the Fall Risk Test (p = .001). For the Timed Up and Go test, participants exhibited significant improvement in both the acute (8.68 vs. 7.91 s) and acclimated effect (7.91 vs. 7.41 s) of wearing CGs. For the Berg Balance Scale, participants showed significant improvement after wearing CGs for 1 week in comparison to the no CGs condition (55.77 vs. 55.39 points). For the Fall Risk Test, participants showed a significant improvement in the acute effect of wearing CGs in comparison to the no CGs condition (1.55° vs. 1.31°). This exploratory study showed that wearing waist-to-above-ankle CGs provided a positive impact on balance control in healthy community-dwelling older adults. It lays the foundation for future studies with a larger sample size to investigate the potential benefits of wearing CGs in individuals with balance control deficits and/or other comorbidities.

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Assessing Postural Control From Birth to Adulthood Among Individuals Born Preterm: A Systematic Review

Soraia Pereira, Augusta Silva, Rubim Santos, and Cláudia Costa Silva

Premature life exposure, meaning an immature central nervous system, presents a significant challenge for the development of postural control and, in turn, overall motor development. Preventing motor delay thus requires identifying, characterizing, and quantifying deficit in postural control as early as possible. In our study, we reviewed the procedures used in past studies to assess postural control among individuals born preterm, specifically the characterization of participants, the instruments and motor tasks involved, the types of data collected and analyzed, and the outcomes. To that end, we performed a literature search on PubMed, Wiley Online Library, Web of Science, and Scopus using Boolean logic and assessed the quality of the studies with a standardized assessment based on the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guidelines and the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Of 35 potential studies, 24 were included; all evaluated infants born preterm, but six did not include a control group of full-term infants. Although the heterogeneity of measurements, variability of instruments, and divergence in motor tasks examined limit definitive conclusions based on quantitative synthesis and the generalization of the results, most studies revealed dysfunctional postural control among individuals born preterm.

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Force–Time Characteristics of Repeated Bouts of Depth Jumps and the Effects of Compression Garments

Freddy Brown, Matt Hill, Derek Renshaw, and Jason Tallis

No studies have reported ground reaction force (GRF) profiles of the repeated depth jump (DJ) protocols commonly used to study exercise-induced muscle damage. Furthermore, while compression garments (CG) may accelerate recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage, any effects on the repeated bout effect are unknown. Therefore, we investigated the GRF profiles of 2 repeated bouts of damage-inducing DJs and the effects of wearing CG for recovery. Nonresistance-trained males randomly received CG (n = 9) or placebo (n = 8) for 72 hours recovery, following 20 × 20 m sprints and 10 × 10 DJs from 0.6 m. Exercise was repeated after 14 days. Using a 3-way (set × bout × group) design, changes in GRF were assessed with analysis of variance and statistical parametric mapping. Jump height, reactive strength, peak, and mean propulsive forces declined between sets (P < .001). Vertical stiffness, contact time, force at zero velocity, and propulsive duration increased (P < .05). According to statistical parametric mapping, braking (17%–25% of the movement) and propulsive forces (58%–81%) declined (P < .05). During the repeated bout, peak propulsive force and duration increased (P < .05), while mean propulsive force (P < .05) and GRF from 59% to 73% declined (P < .001). A repeated bout of DJs differed in propulsive GRF, without changes to the eccentric phase, or effects from CG.

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Influence of Pedal Interface During Pedaling With the Upper Versus Lower Limbs: A Pilot Analysis of Torque Performance and Muscle Synergies

Laurent Vigouroux, Théo Cartier, and Guillaume Rao

Pedaling is a physical exercise practiced with either the upper or the lower limbs. Muscle coordination during these exercises has been previously studied using electromyography and synergy analysis, and three to four synergies have been identified for the lower and upper limbs. The question of synergy adaptabilities has not been investigated during pedaling with the upper limbs, and the impact of various modalities is yet not known. This study investigates the effect of pedal type (either clipped/gripped or flat) on the torque performance and the synergy in both upper and lower limbs. Torques applied by six participants while pedaling at 30% of their maximal power have been recorded for both upper and lower limbs. Electromyographic data of 11 muscles on the upper limbs and 11 muscles on the lower limbs have been recorded and synergies extracted and compared between pedal types. Results showed that the torques were not modified by the pedal types for the lower limbs while a deep adaptation is observable for the upper limbs. Participants indeed used the additional holding possibility by pulling the pedals on top of the pushing action. Synergies were accordingly modified for upper limbs while they remain stable for the lower limbs. In both limbs, the synergies showed a good reproducibility even if larger variabilities were observed for the upper limbs. This pilot study highlights the adaptability of muscle synergies according to the condition of movement execution, especially observed for the upper limbs, and can bring some new insights for the rehabilitation exercises.

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Volume 41 (2024): Issue 2 (Apr 2024)

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The Influence of Blind Tennis on Subjective Inclusion Experiences—An Ableism-Critical Analysis

Felix Oldörp, Martin Giese, and Michelle Grenier

In this paper, we analyze the subjective inclusion experiences of visually impaired (VI) adult tennis players from an ableism-critical perspective. The primary focus of this research is the inclusive potential of blind tennis from the perspective of VI individuals. Episodic interviews were conducted to capture subjective perspectives. A qualitative text analysis revealed that the interviewees were confronted with multiple ability assumptions by sighted people in their everyday lives. Deficit notions on the performance of VI people included sports, work, and general activities. Participation in blind tennis helped the interviewees build a “competent identity” and acquire various skills useful for their everyday lives as participation in blind tennis was a pathway for competence in sports. Further research is needed to identify exclusion experiences from the perspective of disabled people to recognize the potential of different sports in reducing barriers to participation.

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Volume 40 (2024): Issue 2 (Apr 2024)

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Volume 28 (2024): Issue 2 (Apr 2024)

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Dr Charles J. (Chuck) Dillman: A Remembrance

Robert Shapiro, Robert Gregor, and John Challis

In August 2023, the biomechanics community suffered a significant loss with the death of Dr Charles J. Dillman. His work in the area of sport biomechanics was groundbreaking. In this tribute, 10 former students and 9 former colleagues remember “Chuck” and his impact on their lives, careers, and the field of biomechanics.

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Acute Effect of Video Feedback on Self-Regulation and Proprioceptive Control of Standing Back Tuck Somersault in the Absence of Vision

Nour Mohamed Abahnini, Khemais Abahnini, and Bessem Mkaouer

The purpose of this study was to assess the immediate effect of video feedback on the regulation and control of the standing back tuck somersault in the absence of vision. Two groups of male parkour athletes performed the standing back tuck somersault under both open and closed eyes conditions. The first group received video feedback, while the second group received verbal feedback. Concurrent analysis, including kinetic data from a force plate (Kistler Quattro-Jump) and kinematic data in two-dimensional by Kinovea freeware, was employed for motion and technical performance analysis. The results indicate that the loss of vision during the standing back tuck somersault affected only the take-off and ungrouping angle, as well as the vertical velocity and displacement. These effects were consistent regardless of the type of feedback provided (i.e., video feedback or verbal feedback). Furthermore, a significant Vision × Feedback interaction was observed at the level of technical performance. This suggests that the use of video feedback enabled the parkour athletes to maintain a high level of technical performance both with and without vision (i.e., 13.56 vs. 13.00 points, respectively, p > .05 and d = 2.233). However, the verbal feedback group technical performance declined significantly under the no-vision condition compared with the vision condition (13.14 vs. 10.25 points, respectively, with and without vision, p < .001 and d = 2.382). We concluded that when the movement is proprioceptively controlled (i.e., without vision), the video feedback enables the athletes to globally assess the technical deficiencies arising from the lack of vision and to correct them. These findings are discussed based on parkour athletes’ ability to evaluate the kinematic parameters of the movement.