Our results suggest that local tissue cooling, similar to cryotherapy, improves edema and inflammatory reaction, and may be useful for reducing inflammatory response without inhibiting blood flow after contusion.

This study aimed to investigate the difference in the prevalence, severity, and risk factors of dysmenorrhea between Japanese female athletes and non-athletes in universities. The participants were 18 to 30 years old with no history of a previous pregnancy and/or childbirth. After application of the exclusion criteria, the cohort comprised 605 athletes and 295 non-athletes. An anonymous questionnaire, which included self-reported information on age, height, weight, age at menarche, menstrual cycle days, menstrual duration, dysmenorrhea severity, sleeping hours, dietary habits, exercise habits, training hours, and competition level was administered. Compared with athletes, non-athletes had a higher prevalence of dysmenorrhea (85.6% in athletes, 90.5% in athletes, p < 0.05); non-athletes also demonstrated increased severity (none/mild 27.8%, moderate 19.3%, and severe 52.9% in athletes; none/mild 21.2%, moderate 17.2%, and severe 61.6% in non-athletes; p < 0.05). Factors related to severe dysmenorrhea in athletes included long training hours, early menarche, and prolonged menstrual periods. In non-athletes, short menstrual cycle days and extended menstrual periods were related to severe dysmenorrhea. The prevalence and severity of dysmenorrhea were higher among non-athletes than among athletes; different factors were related to severe dysmenorrhea in these two groups. Thus, different strategies are necessary to manage dysmenorrhea for athletes and non-athletes in universities.

IntroductionMenstrual dysfunction, musculoskeletal injury, and poor nutrition combine to form the female athlete triad (FAT), which results in serious health consequences for affected athletes. To this point, the risk factors of this phenomenon have not been fully explored in Japanese female college athletes. Additionally, the effect of competitive level on FAT risk factors has also not been reported. Therefore, we aimed to examine FAT risk factors in Japanese female athletes of various sports as well as examine the impact of competitive level on FAT.MethodsA Japanese-language survey was completed by 531 athletes and 20 nonathletes at two Japanese universities and answers with regard to menstrual status, musculoskeletal injury, nutrition, and other variables were analyzed based on classification of the sports into nine distinct groups based on activity type. Sport intensity, training volume, and competitive levels were used to further classify each sport. One-way ANOVA and the Bonferroni post hoc test using SPSS were carried out to analyze significance for relationships between sport intensity and FAT risk factors. Additionally, the relationship between competitive level and FAT risk factors was analyzed by ANOVA and Bonferroni post hoc tests.ResultsSport intensity was positively correlated with a delay in menarche as well as dysmenorrhea and poor nutrition while musculoskeletal injury was correlated with repetitive, high-training volume sports. Lower competitive levels increased dysmenorrhea but did not impact injury status or nutrition.ConclusionSport intensity and training volume, but not competitive level, are the critical factors affecting FAT risk in Japanese female college athletes.

IntroductionRaising awareness on a disorder is important for its prevention and for promoting public health. However, for sports injuries like the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury no studies have investigated the awareness on risk factors for injury and possible preventative measures in the general population. The sources of information among the population are also unclear. The purpose of the present study was to identify these aspects of public awareness about the ACL injury.Materials and methodsA questionnaire was randomly distributed among the general population registered with a web based questionnaire supplier, to recruit 900 participants who were aware about the ACL injury. The questionnaire consisted of two parts: Question 1 asked them about their sources of information regarding the ACL injury; Question 2 asked them about the risk factors for ACL injury. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the information sources that provide a good understanding of the risk factors.Results and discussionThe leading source of information for ACL injury was television (57.0%). However, the results of logistic regression analysis revealed that television was not an effective medium to create awareness about the risk factors, among the general population. Instead “Lecture by a coach”, “Classroom session on Health”, and “Newspaper” were significantly more effective in creating a good awareness of the risk factors (p < 0.001).

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