Natural forces affect every step we take. When the forces are too great for plantar tissues to handle, overloading occurs. Tissue overload can occur throughout the kinetic chain, wreaking havoc from end to end. Over the past 15 to 20 years, research has focused on tissue overloading as the most common cause of overuse injury. Overload is caused by...
By Paul Graham, B App Sc (Pod), FAAPSM
January 2024
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Cover Story
Guest Perspective
In 2007, one study estimated there were 300,000 sports-related traumatic brain injuries in high school and collegiate athletes. Sports brain injuries and concussions were second only to motor vehicle accidents amongst people aged 15-24.1 Fast forward to a 2018 study using data from the Youth Risk Behaviors Survey where...
By Mark Mendeszoon, DPM
Utilizing nationally representative data from the Youth Behavior Risk Surveillance System (YBRSS), a new study1 examined the association between self-reported concussion frequency and non-fatal suicidal behaviors among U.S. high school students. The study appeared in a special mental health issue of the...
Features
Ingrown toenails (onychocryptoses) are one of the most common nail pathologies, yet there is a lack of data to assess the evidence surrounding the nail surgery procedures from which clinicians must choose.
By Victoria Exley, BSc (Hons ) Pod, MSc; Katherine Jones, PhD; Grace O’Carroll, PhD; Judith Watson, PhD; and Michael Backhouse, PhD
Plantar fasciitis is a chronic and painful disabling condition affecting the inferomedial aspect of the heel, usually extending toward the metatarsophalangeal joints. These authors examined the anatomical and biomechanical substrates of plantar fasciitis with special emphasis on the emerging, though largely neglected, fascial system.
By Larisa Ryskalin, PhD; Gabriele Morucci, PhD; Paola Soldani, PhD; and Marco Gesi, PhD
Falls are a significant health concern especially among older adults. While falls are associated with osteoarthritis (OA) and persistent pain at the hip and knee, falls have not been investigated in people with chronic ankle symptoms. According to qualitative research on individuals with...
By Munira M. Al Mahrouqi, PT, PhD; Bill Vicenzino, PT, PhD; David A. MacDonald, PT, PhD; and Michelle D. Smith, PT, PhD
ShortTakes From the Literature
Aging is typically associated with decreased muscle strength and rate of force development (RFD), partly explained by motor unit remodeling due to denervation, and subsequent loss of fast-twitch type II myofibers. Exercise is commonly advocated to counteract this detrimental loss. However, it is unclear how lifelong...
Are so-called “Weekend Warriors”—those folks who cram all their physical activity into 1–2 days—better than those who distribute their activity more evenly over the week? In a study from Massachusetts General Hospital, researchers looked at 90,000 people who wore accelerometers for a week.
Innovative shoe insoles, designed to enhance sensory information on the plantar surface of the feet, could help to improve walking in people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This study sought to compare the effects of wearing textured versus smooth insoles, on measures of gait, foot sensation, and patient-reported outcomes (PROs), in people with MS.
Studies show that fewer than 1 in 5 middle-age adults engage in regular exercise. But nearly everyone engages in micropatterns of physical activity, aka short bouts of daily living activities—in other words, chores or errands. Now, a study from Australia has looked at the associations of bouts of moderate-to-vigorous...
This research explored and analyzed the effects of early partial weight-bearing rehabilitative exercise on postoperative recovery after Sanders IV calcaneal fractures. Researchers from The Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital in China worked with 86 patients hospitalized with...
Talus fractures are often the result of high-energy mechanisms and can lead to devastating complications. Treatment is often operative; however, the appropriate timing of this has been debated. The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy and safety of the early treatment of talus fractures.
Hip-focused physical therapy for older adults with chronic low back pain, hip pain, and hip muscle weakness may offer promise to address pain-related disability and functional limitations. NIA-funded scientists recently conducted a clinical trial comparing hip- versus back-focused therapies.
Based on data from nearly 50,000 adults in the United Kingdom, researchers from the U.S. National Institutes of Health have shown an association between dementia risk and daily sedentary behavior. Though the study cannot establish a causal link, it does support the idea that more time spent not moving–such as...
Osteoarthritis (OA), the leading cause of disability among adults, has no cure and is associated with significant comorbidities. The premise of this randomized clinical trial is that, in a population at risk, a 48-month program of dietary weight loss and exercise will result in less incident structural knee OA compared to control.
Meeting Highlights III from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association
Lower Extremity Review thanks the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, the NATA Research & Education Foundation, the Journal of Athletic Training, and the authors for granting reuse permissions for this information.
Background: Syndesmosis ankle sprains account for 25% of all ankle sprains in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football athletes. Typical return-to-play (RTP) time for an ankle syndesmosis sprain is approximately 8 weeks. However, in a small randomized controlled trial, it was found that the platelet rich...
Background: Syndesmotic injuries make up 12% of all ankle sprains, but 25% of ankle sprains in football. Historically, screw fixation has been the predominant type of surgery, which provides stabilization to the syndesmosis joint. However, the strong fixation procedure can cause a loss of movement in the early recovery phase...
Background: A 22-year-old, Division I male football defensive back, with no previous history of ankle injury, sustained a left ankle injury during competition. The mechanism of injury was direct contact to the lateral lower leg from an opponent forcing the ankle toward eversion. Initial on-field evaluation revealed palpable...
Industry News & Updates
An augmented-reality (AR) headset is an effective digital tool for improving posture, gait, and “freezing” in people with Parkinson’s disease, according to a recent Cleveland Clinic trial. The “Dual-task Augmented Reality Treatment” (DART) uses the Microsoft HoloLens2 to run patients through dual-task training (DTT), a series of...
Professor Michael Madigan, PhD, and doctoral candidate Youngjae Lee with the Madigan Biomechanics Group in the Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University are working toward a solution to a common problem: trips and falls.
Researchers with the Griffith Centre of Biomedical and Rehabilitation Engineering (GCORE) and Menzies Health Institute Queensland, Australia, have developed a groundbreaking diagnostic tool to streamline the fitting of bionic prosthetic legs.
The Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation (OREF), in collaboration with the Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC) and the US Department of Defense’s (DoD) US Army Medical Research and Development Command’s (USAMRDC) Military Operational Medicine Research Program (MOMRP), has...
The Strength of My Scars is an innovative children’s book series created to instill comfort and hope in pediatric patients and their families. Written by surgeon Maria Baimas-George, MD, MPH, these stories serve as a valuable supplement to conversations with medical professionals with the goal of improving comprehension and...
The Last Word
Our previous study found that one maximal voluntary eccentric contraction (MVC-ECC) performed daily for 5 days a week for 4 weeks increased MVC-ECC, isometric (MVC-ISO), and concentric contraction (MVC-CON) torque of the elbow flexors more than 10%. The present study investigated the effects of six maximal voluntary eccentric contractions on the...
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