Objective
To compare, landing mechanics and electromyographic activity of the lower extremities during side hopping and crossover hopping maneuvers, in noninjured women and women with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction.
Design
A case-control study.
Setting
A 3-dimensional motion analysis laboratory.
Participants
Twenty-eight young women (range, 21–35 years) (15 control subjects and 13 subjects with ACL reconstruction).
Patients and Methods
All participants performed a side-to-side hopping task that consisted of hopping single-legged 10 times consecutively from side to side across 2 lines marked 30 cm apart on 2 individual force plates. The task was designated as a side hopping when the hop was to the opposite side of the stance leg and as crossover hopping when the hop was toward the side of the stance leg.
Main Outcome Measurements
Peak hip-/knee-joint angles; peak knee extension/abduction joint moments; electromyographic studies of the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, rectus femoris, and hamstring muscles; and quadriceps/hamstring co-contraction ratio were compared between the groups by means of 2 × 2 multivariate analysis of variance tests (group × maneuver).
Results
Noninjured women and women with ACL reconstruction exhibited similar hip-and knee-joint angles during both types of hopping. Hip-joint angles were greater during the crossover hopping in both groups, and knee-joint angles did not differ between the groups or hops. Knee-joint moments demonstrated a significant group × maneuver interaction. Greater knee extension and valgus moments were noted in the control group during crossover hopping, and greater knee abduction moments were noted in the ACL group during side hopping. Electromyographic data revealed no statistically significantly differences between the groups.
Conclusions
Women with ACL reconstruction exhibited the restoration of functional biomechanical movements such as hip-/knee-joint angles and lower extremity neuromuscular activation during side-to-side athletic tasks. However, not all biomechanical strategies are restored years after surgery, and women who have undergone a procedure such as ACL reconstruction may continue to exhibit knee-joint abduction moments that increase the risk of additional knee injury.
Extensive evaluations of the federally‐funded national school lunch program (NSLP) have been carried out on the U.S. mainland. Puerto Rico, a commonwealth of the U.S. but with an ethnically diverse population is an active participant in this program but has never been included in assessment studies. Multiple 24‐hr recall questionnaires were administered to groups of participating (P) and non‐participating (NP) children in the NSLP at 3 educational levels: elementary, middl and high‐schools. Comparisons were made for children within the study as well as between comparable children in mainland studies for total intake of several macro‐ and micro‐nutrients, contribution of the lunch to the total daily intake and adherence to U.S. Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI's) including acceptable macronutrient distribution ranges (AMDR's). Results show Both P and NP groups failed to reach RDA's for Vitamins A, D, E and calcium and exceeded levels for sodium, total fat and saturated fat Nevertheless, results suggest healthier intake of several nutrients in P vs NP which include increased Vitamin B12, folate, iron, zinc as well as less trans‐fatty acids. These findings parallel overall results from mainland reports. The unique feature of this study is that it is the first assessment of the NSLP in a completely Hispanic population. Supported by USDA, NRI Grant # 2003‐35200‐13590.
Snacking is a common practice and depending upon content, can either contribute to or counteract the widespread incidence of our nation's obesity epidemic. The objective of this study is to determine the contribution of snacks to total daily nutrients in a population of normal and overweight children at 3 different school levels, both during week days and weekend days. To this effect, we have performed multiple 24 hr dietary recall interviews with normal weight (N) and overweight (O) (BMI at the 85th percentile) children in Elementary (E) n = 101, Intermediate (I) n = 116 and High (H) n = 105 schools of metropolitan San Juan, collecting information from week days and from weekend days. E students reported highest rate of snacking, followed by I students with H students having the lowest rate. Weekend snacking was less frequent with E and I children but about the same in H children. Results from macronutrient content show that snacks accounted for 23% of calories for E children, 34% of calories for I children and 28% of calories for H children with O children having slightly higher %'s than N children. Patterns of snacks on weekends closely resembled those of weekdays. Overall, these data provide information that could be used to determine if the content of snacks in our population weighs for or against the overall obesity problem. Financial support: National Research Initiative of the USDA Cooperative State Research Education and Extension Service, Grant number 2003–35200‐13590.
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