Knowledge about sport and exercise science

Cross-sectional insights into exercise physiology knowledge among medical students in Jordan

Objectives

Exercise physiology is a branch of physiology that studies how physical activity and exercise alter the structure and function of living organisms. Knowledge of exercise physiology is crucial to improve athletic performance, improve people's ability to cope with extreme circumstances and approach chronic diseases. This research aimed to evaluate the knowledge of future healthcare professionals, namely, the medical students in Jordan regarding exercise physiology.

Methods

Responses were collected from 524 undergraduate medical students enrolled in clinical clerkship. An online survey that evaluated participants' basic understanding of various physiological concepts related to physical exercises, such as respiratory exchange ratio, physical fitness, V̇O2 max and exercise at high altitudes was employed in the study.

Results

63.2% of participants had a poor level of exercise physiology knowledge. Misconceptions regarding V̇O2 max definition (93.3%), application (46.4%), significance (35.6%) and related physiological factors (48.7%) were observed. Students had misconceptions about physical fitness evaluation questions (52.5%, 39%, and 41.8%, respectively). Student proportions of 37%, 41%, 80.3% and 73.1% showed misconceptions about muscle groups and energy systems during training, training prescription variables, respiratory exchange ratio, and high-altitude performance, respectively. Significant differences in knowledge levels were found based on respondent characteristics (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

Knowledge of exercise physiology is more than desirable for medical professionals. Therefore, efforts must be made to increase awareness and improve knowledge about basic physiological fundamentals related to exercise physiology among medical students in Jordan, as they represent the backbone of healthcare professionals of the future who will deal with medical conditions related to physical activity and exercise.

Investigating academic performance and perceptions of human physiology and exercise physiology courses among undergraduate students of physical education at a Brazilian public university

PURPOSE

To compare the academic performance of undergraduate students in physical education who studied exercise physiology before and after studying human physiology and investigate students' perceptions of human physiology and exercise physiology courses.

METHODS

This study included 311 undergraduate students pursuing a bachelor's degree in physical education. Participants were divided into two groups: those who had previously attended and completed the human physiology course (group 1, n = 212, 68.2%) and those who had not previously attended or had attended but failed the human physiology course (group 2, n = 99, 31.8%). The prevalence ratio (PR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated using a Poisson regression model with a robust variance estimator. The second aim comprised 67 students with bachelor's degrees in physical education who completed an electronic questionnaire about their perceptions of human physiology and exercise physiology curriculum.

RESULTS

Compared with those who attended human physiology and passed, those who had not previously attended or had attended but failed the human physiology course have a higher PR of 2.37 (95% CI, 1.68-3.34) for failing exercise physiology. Regarding the students' perceptions of human physiology and exercise physiology courses, most students reported that they were challenging (58.2% and 64.2%, respectively), but they also recognized the importance of these courses for professional practice (59.7% and 85.1%, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Human physiology should be considered a prerequisite for an undergraduate course leading to a bachelor's degree in physical education. Furthermore, students considered human physiology and exercise physiology courses important yet challenging. Therefore, continuous student assessment is vital for improving the teaching-learning process.

EXERCISE SCIENCE IN HIGH SCHOOL BIOLOGY TEXTBOOKS

ABSTRACT The content of high school textbooks related to physical activity and exercise is of utmost importance because physical activity and exercise are considered important tools in maintaining and improving health. Our objective was to analyze the presence and quality of exercise science content in high school biology textbooks approved by the National Textbook Plan. A guiding document was developed to enable the analysis of the textbooks. The topics investigated were: I) the extent of content related to exercise science; II) misconceptions about exercise science; III) health benefits attributed to exercise. The academic qualifications of the textbook authors were also analyzed. All analyzed textbooks (n = 9) featured some degree of exercise science content. In addition, ~67% of textbooks analyzed had at least one misconception regarding exercise science, the most common being related to biochemistry and muscle physiology. Also, 93.8% of the authors had undergraduate degrees in biological sciences; 43.8% had doctoral degrees. In conclusion, all high school biology textbooks presented content related to exercise science; however, most of them presented at least one misconception regarding exercise science. Thus, we suggest that the Brazilian National Textbook Plan should improve the criteria for analyzing biology textbooks. Level of Evidence III; Economic and decision analyses - Development of an economic or decision model.

Presence of exercise physiology or similar coursework in the curricula of Brazilian health science undergraduate programs

Bolstered by evidence of the health benefits of exercise, health professionals advise their patients about it. Thus these professionals should have a basic knowledge of exercise physiology. In Brazil, a graduate degree is not mandatory, so for many health providers, the only opportunity to receive information on exercise physiology content is during their undergraduate study. Therefore, it is imperative that health science undergraduate programs include content on exercise physiology. The aim of the study was to verify the presence of exercise physiology (or similar coursework) in the curricula of seven health science undergraduate programs (biomedicine, physical education, nursing, physiotherapy, medicine, nutrition, and psychology). The study was divided into three phases: 1) a survey of the total number of undergraduate programs (n = 4,940) through an electronic system of the Brazilian Ministry of Education (e-MEC); 2) a random selection of 10% of the total undergraduate programs (n = 494) for further analysis of the curriculum; and 3) analysis of the curricula of the selected undergraduate programs. Of 494 undergraduate programs, we did not find curricula for 77 of them. Therefore, the final sample consisted of 417 undergraduate programs. In total, 65.9% of the undergraduate programs did not offer coursework in exercise physiology. The chi-square test revealed a significant association between undergraduate curricula in health science and the presence or absence of exercise physiology coursework [X²(6, n = 417) = 293.0, P < 0.0001]. We did not find exercise physiology coursework in most of the analyzed undergraduate programs. Alternatives to solve the lack of exercise physiology coursework would be the inclusion of content related to exercise physiology in professional/graduate education or in continuing education programs.

Does Health Professional Counseling Impact the Quality-of-Life Levels of Older Adults Enrolled in Physical Activity Programs?

Background and objectives: There are studies showing that exercise counseled by health professionals can improve physical fitness. However, less is known about the effects of exercise counseling on quality of life. The aim of this study was to investigate health-related quality of life of older adults who received or did not receive physical exercise counseling by sport and exercise professionals or physicians. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study that investigated quality of life of older adults who did or did not receive exercise counseling from health professionals. Older adults who were physically active took part in this study: 45 participants performed exercise advised by sport and exercise professionals (SEPCG), 19 participants performed exercise advised by physicians (PCG), and 26 participants performed exercise without counseling (NCG). Participants answered the SF-36 to estimate quality of life. Results: Analysis revealed that responses on all SF-36 subscales were higher in those participants who received counseling by sport and exercise professionals (Functioning capacity, β = -26.283, p < 0.001 and β = -26.482, p < 0.001, Role limitations due to physical problems, β = -43.372, p < 0.001 and β = -45.177, p < 0.001, Pain, β = -17.634, p < 0.001 and β = -16.015, p < 0.001, General health perceptions, β = -38.008, p < 0.001 and β = -32.529, p < 0.001, Vitality, β = -18.573, p < 0.001 and β = -16.406, p = 0.001, Social functioning, β = -37.963, p < 0.001 and β = -29.224, p < 0.001, Role limitations due to emotional problems, β = -52.246, p < 0.001 and β = -40.173, p < 0.001, Mental health, β = -17.381, p < 0.001 and β = -12.121, p < 0.001, PCG and NCG respectively). Conclusions: The results showed that those older adults who were counseled by sport and exercise professionals presented better quality of life, possibly because these professionals counseled exercise based on current guidelines for exercise prescription.

Prevention of Sudden Death Related to Sport: The Science of Basic Life Support-from Theory to Practice

The sudden cardiac arrest (CA) and death of athletes are dramatic and emotionally impacting events for health professionals, family, and society. Although the practice of sport participation improves general health, physical fitness, and quality of life, intense physical exercise can be a trigger for CA and sudden death occasionally in the presence of known or unknown cardiac disorders (mainly hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) and risk factors (environment, health style, family, and genetic). The present review found that sudden death associated with CA was not such a common event in competitive athletes, but it might be an underestimated event in recreational athletes. Thus, considering the exponential increase in sport participation, both in a recreational or competitive way, and the rate of sudden CA, knowledge of implementing prevention and treatment strategies is crucial. This includes preparation of health professionals and lay people in basic life support (BLS); screening and pre-participation assessment in sport programs and health education; and promotion for the recognition of CA and early completion of BLS and rapid access to automatic external defibrillator to improve the victim survival/prognosis. Thus, the purpose of this review is to provide for health professionals and lay people the most updated information, based on current guidelines, of how to proceed in an emergency situation associated with sudden CA of young adult athletes.

Profiling Rest Intervals between Sets and Associated Factors in Resistance Training Participants

The aims of this study were: (1) to report on and analyse rest interval (RI) control between sets adopted by resistance training (RT) participants; (2) to evaluate how RT participants control RIs; and (3) to describe the factors associated with controlling RIs, such as, gender, RT experience, and professional guidance. Four hundred and fifteen volunteers (198 women and 217 men) answered a questionnaire about RI control. Among the participants, 89.9% (n = 373) reported receiving guidance during physical training, of which 74.5% (n = 278) received instruction from a sports and exercise professional. The proportion of subjects that reported controlling RIs was 71.6% (n = 297). Most subjects that reported controlling RIs (95.0%, n = 282) reported adopting an RI of 60 s or less. There is no association of RI control with gender and professional guidance. The RI adopted by most of the participants might be considered short (<60 s), which is not in line with most RT guidelines. The results of the current study could be used to improve attitudes toward RT.