Speed Rope Skipping - Performance and Coordination in a Four-Limb Task

This study investigated biomechanical characteristics of Speed Rope Skipping (RS) and estimated the contribution of the lower and upper limbs to overall performance. Lower (jumping), upper (turning), and whole-body (skipping) performance were examined in 23 rope skippers. All tests were recorded by 2 D video and nine skipping tests were performed in a 3 D motion capture system. Similar movement patterns were observed for the lower limbs in all participants, while handle trajectories differed in shape and symmetry according to performance. In general, turning unlike jumping performance was close to and significantly correlated with skipping performance. Therefore, it appears that lower extremity movement may be adapted to the limiting capacity of the upper extremity to maintain movement stability.

Oral Contraceptives Do Not Affect Physiological Responses to Strength Exercise

ABSTRACT

Umlauff, L, Weil, P, Zimmer, P, Hackney, AC, Bloch, W, and Schumann, M. Oral contraceptives do not affect physiological responses to strength exercise. J Strength Cond Res 35(4): 894-901, 2021-This study investigated the effect of oral contraceptive (OC) use on acute changes in steroid hormone concentrations and tryptophan (TRP) metabolites in response to strength exercise. Twenty-one women (age: 23 ± 3 years), 8 combined OC users (OC group) and 13 naturally cycling women (menstrual cycle [MC] group), participated. Testing was performed during the pill-free interval for the OC group and the follicular phase for the MC group. Subjects completed an intense strength exercise protocol (4 × 10 repetitions back squat). Blood samples were taken at baseline (T0), post-exercise (T1), and after 24 hours (T2) to determine serum concentrations of cortisol, estradiol, testosterone, TRP, and kynurenine (KYN). Statistical significance was defined as p ≤ 0.05. At T0, the OC group showed higher cortisol (OC: 493.7 ± 47.1 ng·mL-1, MC: 299.1 ± 62.7 ng·mL-1, p < 0.001) and blood lactate (OC: 1.81 ± 0.61 mmol·L-1, MC: 1.06 ± 0.30 mmol·L-1, p = 0.001) and lower estradiol (OC: 31.12 ± 4.24 pg·mL-1, MC: 38.34 ± 7.50 pg·mL-1, p = 0.023) and KYN (OC: 1.15 ± 0.23 µmol·L-1, MC: 1.75 ± 0.50 µmol·L-1, p = 0.005). No significant interactions (group × time, p > 0.05) were found for the hormones and TRP metabolites assessed. Oral contraceptive use did not affect the physiological response of steroid hormones and TRP metabolites to acute strength exercise during the low hormone phase of the contraceptive or MC in healthy young women, even when some baseline concentrations differed between groups. Consequently, these findings provide important implications for practitioners testing heterogeneous groups of female athletes.

Perfectionistic Tendencies in Insomnia Patients' Behavior During Psychometric Testing

According to self-report questionnaire studies, insomnia patients differ from healthy controls with respect to several personality traits. The current study aimed at exploring how these personality traits may translate into behavior. Insomnia patients' behavior during psychometric testing (n = 163) was investigated in comparison to healthy controls (n = 81), patients with other sleep disorders (n = 80), and patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (n = 36). In line with our hypotheses, insomnia patients made more additional comments than healthy controls and more corrections than patients with other sleep disorders during sleep-related questionnaire completion. Furthermore, insomnia patients calculated the sum score of a depression questionnaire more frequently than both healthy controls and patients with other sleep disorders. These findings further support the assumption of an altered personality profile in patients with primary insomnia. Future work should aim to elucidate what personality factors these novel behavioral markers may reflect.

Rekindling the flame: routine practices that promote hospital community leadership

Because of the need of focus on their financial survival, hospitals and health systems are not the popular community-oriented institutions they once were--too many have set aside their mission to promote and protect the health of their communities. By conducting on-site interviews with CEOs, other executives, board members, and community partners in seven hospitals across the nation, we discovered 25 management and governance practices used by hospitals that excel in relating to their communities. We have grouped these practices for promoting community health into six functions: (1) identifying community needs; (2) setting goals; (3) allocating financial and human resources; (4) educating leaders, staff, and community members; (5) measuring outcomes; and (6) sustaining the mission. Specific examples are given that describe what we learned. Ultimately, we hope to engender a dialog about other management and governance practices that have proven successful in promoting hospitals' involvement in community health.

Rekindling the flame. Achieving community health through strong leadership

Is the commitment to community health waning as hospitals focus their attention on dwindling reimbursement and proliferating regulations? Not if these four health care organizations are any indication of the innovative ways hospitals and communities can work together.

Exploring the gender gap in healthcare management

A 1990 study by ACHE and the University of Iowa compared the career attainments and attitudes of a group of male and female healthcare executives. The research showed that among men and women who had entered the field at the same time and had achieved similar educational levels, women did not fare as well as men in terms of salary, position level, or job satisfaction. A follow-up to this study, which consisted of two parts, was conducted in 1995 by ACHE, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and Lamalie Amrop International to learn whether the gender gap had narrowed. The 1990 study divided respondents into groups according to the year they entered healthcare management: 1971-1975, 1976-1980, or 1981-1985. The first part of the 1995 project was a replication study that paralleled the 1990 study, dividing a new pool of respondents into three groups: 1976-1980, 1981-1985, and 1986-1990. The second part of the follow-up project was a panel study, in which respondents from the 1990 study were surveyed again. Following are highlights from the 1995 study.

Hospital CEO turnover: modelling more or less durable places to work

This study documents the rising rate of hospital CEO turnovers between 1978 and 1988, a trend that has accelerated since the introduction of Medicare's prospective payment system. Using data from the American Hospital Association, we identify characteristics of hospitals experiencing rapid CEO turnover. Results show that full utilization along with a positive operating margin can prolong the CEO's tenure but ownership and system membership specify the findings. For example, CEO turnover is higher in investor-owned, multihospital systems hospitals if they are small, if their costs are high and if they have recently joined a multi-hospital system. By contrast, in not-for-profit multihospital systems, turnover is higher if they have low occupancy and low operating margins. CEO turnover in not-for-profit, freestanding hospitals is higher in metropolitan areas and in the Western region of the US as well as in hospitals with low occupancy, low operating margins and lower costs per patient day. Governmental hospitals experiencing higher CEO turnover are small, metropolitan and tend to be located in any region except the Midwest. Many have recently joined a multi-hospital system and have experienced low operating margins.

Elective postoperative radiotherapy for locally advanced colorectal cancer. A preliminary report

Preoperative radiotherapy in colorectal carcinoma invalidates surgical staging and delays performing the surgical resection. Postoperative radiotherapy does neither. From October 1972, to December 1975, 40 patients at high risk for local recurrence (B2 and C) received postoperative radiotherapy. Lesions that were located in the rectum, rectosigmoid and low sigmoid colon were given 4600 rads in four and a half weeks through an inverted T-shaped field which encompassed the pelvic and paraortic nodes. Patients with tumors located above mid-sigmoid were treated to the entire abdominal cavity by the moving strip technique. Of 19 patients with rectal and rectosigmoid lesions, 14 (74%) are alive without evidence of disease. Two had local recurrence in the treated area. Of 21 patients with lesions above the mid-sigmoid, four have failed locally, while 11 (52%) are alive without evidence of disease. One of these 40 patients died to radiation enteritis. Although the follow up period is short, the results suggest that a moderate dose of radiation may prevent local recurrence in patients with locally advanced colorectal cancer.

Rates and correlates of expenditure increases for personal health services: pre- and post-medicare and medicaid

This investigation of the increases in expenditures for medical care of the noninstitutionalized population of the United States in two recent periods suggests the following: Price increases contributed substantially more to overall expenditure increases in both periods than did use increases. Hospital price increases contributed most to overall price increases in both periods. Drug use in the first period and hospital use in the second period contributed most to overall use increases. The so-called "free services" made a substantial contribution to increases in use between 1963 and 1970, while apparently making no contribution in the earlier period. In the pre-Medicare/Medicaid period, use increase were greatest among the working-age and male population. However, increases in use also seemed to be relatively high among the low-income group. In the most recent period, use increases shifted not only to the elderly and the very young, but also to the group 55-64. The relatively high rate of use increase for males and the low-income group continued. These findings, then, suggest that institution of the Medicare and Medicaid programs was accompanied by acceleration of some trends that were already taking place, i.e., relatively high rates of increase in the use of health services for the low-income population and the aged. Some groups not considered to be target populations for the programs, such as those 35-54, showed a reduction in their use rates; others those 55-64, increased their use. Finally, the non-white population showed no greater rate of increase in use of health services than the white population, even though the former would presumably be considered a target group.