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An 18-year-old, male collegiate basketball athlete complained of right testicular pain following basketball activities. The patient’s imaging denoted edema within the pubis at the insertion of the adductor longus tendon and rectus sheath aponeurosis consistent with inguinal disruption. The patient underwent conservative rehabilitation and attempted to return to participation with increased pain. Subsequently, the patient underwent surgery. Following surgical intervention, the patient underwent 6 weeks of rehabilitation with basketball-specific considerations. On conclusion, the patient was pain free and returned to activity. This case is unique due to the insidious onset, sport in which the patient participated, and failed conservative management.

Context: Hamstring inflexibility is typically treated using therapeutic massage, stretching, and soft tissue mobilization. An alternative intervention is deep oscillation therapy (DOT). Currently, there is a lack of evidence to support DOT’s effectiveness to improve flexibility. Objective: To explore the effectiveness of DOT to improve hamstring flexibility. Design: Randomized single-cohort design. Setting: Research laboratory. Participants: Twenty-nine healthy, physically active individuals (self-reported activity of a minimum 200 min/wk). Interventions: All participants received a single session of DOT with randomization of the participant’s leg for the intervention. The DOT intervention parameters included a 1∶1 mode and 70% to 80% dosage at various frequencies for 28 minutes. Hamstring flexibility was assessed using passive straight leg raise for hip flexion using a digital inclinometer. Patient-reported outcomes were evaluated using the Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score and the Global Rating of Change (GRoC). Main Outcome Measure: The independent variable was time (pre and post). The dependent variables included passive straight leg raise, the GRoC, and the participant’s perceptions of the intervention. Statistical analyses included a dependent t test and a Pearson correlation. Results: Participants reported no issues with sport, activities of daily living, or quality of life prior to beginning the intervention study on the Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score. Passive straight leg raise significantly improved post-DOT (95% confidence interval, 4.48°–7.85°, P < .001) with a mean difference of 6.17 ± 4.42° (pre-DOT = 75.43 ± 21.82° and post-DOT = 81.60 ± 23.17°). A significant moderate positive correlation was identified (r = .439, P = .02) among all participants between the GRoC and the mean change score of hamstring flexibility. Participants believed that the intervention improved their hamstring flexibility (5.41 ± 1.02 points) and was relaxing (6.21 ± 0.86). Conclusions: DOT is an effective intervention to increase hamstring flexibility.

This study used a web-based survey and a cross-sectional design to investigate the health literacy levels of collegiate student-athletes. The survey included a demographic questionnaire and the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy Assessment, which scores an individual’s ability to understand relevant health care information. We calculated descriptive statistics for demographic characteristics and Short Test of Functional Health Literacy Assessment scores. All participants (n = 160) displayed adequate health literacy (mean = 34 ± 2; range = 27–36; adequate = 160/160, 100%). The mean Short Test of Functional Health Literacy Assessment score for both White (range = 27–36; adequate = 133/133, 100%), and non-White participants (range = 28–36, adequate = 27/27, 100%) was 34 ± 2. Health care professionals should feel confident in collaborating with individual patients throughout the decision-making process.

Half of all work-related injuries in the fire service are musculoskeletal-based due to slips, trips, and overexertion. This study evaluated the effects of physical exertion on balance in firefighters. Forty-one firefighters completed a physical exertion protocol with static and dynamic balance assessments while in personal protective equipment. Following the physical exertion protocol, we identified a significant decrease in anterior reach of the right limb, and significant increases in rectangular displacement area in both double- and single-legged stances. Balance is diminished in firefighters wearing personal protective equipment after engaging in a short bout of physical activity, suggesting a potential risk factor for lower extremity injury in the fire service.

Written health and safety policies mitigate catastrophic outcomes resulting from sport injuries. The purpose of this project was to evaluate athletic trainers’ proficiency in evaluating catastrophic policies and procedures alignment with best practices. This study found athletic trainers were not able to identify the majority of policy and procedure components based on evidence-based best practice documents. Furthermore, athletic trainers tended to focus more on aesthetics and feasibility versus alignment with current best practices. Results support the need to enhance education specific to policy and procedure development, evaluation, and implementation in order to improve proficiency of clinicians.

Firefighters are exposed to psychological stress while on duty that could lead to mental and behavioral illnesses that may go unreported. We surveyed firefighters to identify their perceived barriers encountered when attempting to report a mental and behavioral illness with a follow-up question related to how difficult the selected barrier was in the reporting process. A total of 314 firefighters completed the instrument, with most indicating they experienced cultural barriers such as social norms from administration and peers. The findings demonstrate an overall demand for a cultural change within the fire service for a supportive environment that encourages reporting.

Context: While increasing telehealth use throughout sports medicine has improved patients’ access to health care, some communities may not have the same opportunities to connect with a provider. Barriers to telehealth implementation can be influenced by internal (eg, provider’s digital health literacy and resources) and external (eg, community’s social determinants of health or “SDOH”) factors. This study aimed to assess the impact of internal and external factors on telehealth use by athletic trainers (ATs). Design: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: In total, 767 ATs participated in the study. Participants (age = 39 [13] y) completed a survey containing the electronic health literacy scale and digital health literacy instrument, reported professional use of telehealth as a provider (yes/no), provided resources at their clinical site, and provided the zip code for the community they served. After data collection, the researchers extracted SDOH information using the zip code data from 2 US databases, including population density, median household income, poverty index, education level, and technology access. Chi-square or independent samples t tests were conducted to compare telehealth use by each SDOH factor. Results: In total, 62.3% (n = 478/767) of ATs reported using telehealth, and 81.6% of ATs (n = 626) had a dedicated facility to offer health care services. We identified a significant difference in digital health literacy scores between users and nonusers of telehealth (P = .013). We did not identify any significant differences between telehealth users by community type (P = .957), population density (P = .053), income (P = .462), poverty index (P = .073), and computer (P = .211) or broadband internet access (P = .295). Conclusions: Our data suggest that internal factors such as digital health literacy and clinical site resources may have contributed to an AT’s previous telehealth use in clinical practice. However, the SDOH data extracted from the community zip code where the AT provided clinical services were similar for those with and without previous telehealth use.