Objective: This review addresses the effect of overweight and obese weight status on pediatric health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Method: Web of Science, Medline, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, AMED and PubMed were searched for peer-reviewed studies in English reporting HRQOL and weight status in youth (o21 years), published before March 2008. Results: Twenty-eight articles were identified. Regression of HRQOL against body mass index (BMI) using pooled data from 13 studies utilizing the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory identified an inverse relationship between BMI and pediatric HRQOL (r ¼ À0.7, P ¼ 0.008), with impairments in physical and social functioning consistently reported. HRQOL seemed to improve with weight loss, but randomized controlled trials were few and lacked long-term follow-up. Conclusions: Little is known about the factors associated with reduced HRQOL among overweight or obese youth, although gender, age and obesity-related co-morbidities may play a role. Few studies have examined the differences in HRQOL between community and treatment-seeking samples. Pooled regressions suggest pediatric self-reported HRQOL can be predicted from parent proxy reports, although parents of obese youths tend to perceive worse HRQOL than children do about themselves. Thus, future research should include both pediatric and parent proxy perspectives.

The motion of the shoulders, arms and club during the golf swing has often been explained using the 'double pendulum' model. Despite subsequent explanations for the actions of the distal segments of the body, the coordination of more proximal segments during the swing is less well understood. To ascertain the pattern of centre of mass motion and hip and shoulder rotations that result in a high clubhead speed at impact, the swing used in driving from the tee of eight low-handicap golfers was videotaped and analysed using three-dimensional techniques. The shoulders rotated in excess of 90 degrees during the backswing and, in 75% of the golfers, continued rotating away from the flag as the hips began turning back towards it. This sequential pattern of hip and shoulder rotation indicated that they conformed to the 'summation of speed' principle, which is hypothesized to result in a greater torque being applied to the club before impact. The speed of the drive was also benefited by the centre of mass shifting exclusively in the intended direction of ball flight during impact.

This review addresses the impact of obesity on paediatric physical functioning utilizing the World Health Organization International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Framework (ICF). The ICF encompasses functioning (as it relates to all body functions and structures), activities (undertaking a particular task) and participation (in a life situation) with disability referring to impairments in body functions/structures, activity restrictions or participation limitations. Electronic databases were searched for peer-reviewed studies published in English prior to May 2009 that examined aspects of physical functioning in children (≤18 years). Eligible studies (N = 104) were ranked by design and synthesized descriptively. Childhood obesity was found to be associated with deficits in function, including impaired cardiorespiratory fitness and performance of motor tasks; and there was some limited evidence of increased musculoskeletal pain and decrements in muscle strength, gait and balance. Health-related quality of life and the subset of physical functioning was inversely related to weight status. However, studies investigating impacts of obesity on wider activity and participation were lacking. Further research utilizing the ICF is required to identify and better characterize the effects of paediatric obesity on physical function, activity and participation, thereby improving targets for intervention to reduce disability in this population.

Injuries are common within military populations, with high incidence rates well established in the literature. Injuries cause a substantial number of working days lost, a significant cost through compensation claims and an increased risk of attrition. In an effort to address this, a considerable amount of research has gone into identifying the most prevalent types of injury and their associated risk factors. Collective evidence suggests that training and equipment contribute to a large proportion of the injuries sustained. In particular, the large loads borne by soldiers, the high intensity training programs and the influence of footwear have been identified as significant causative factors of lower limb injury in military populations. A number of preventative strategies have been developed within military bodies around the world to address these issues. The relative success of these strategies is highly variable; however, with advancements in technology, new approaches will become available and existing strategies may become more effective.

Twelve male golfers who experienced low back pain (LBP) whilst playing or practicing golf and 18 asymptomatic golfers were recruited and divided into handicap-specific groups; low-handicap golfers, with a handicap between 0 and 12 strokes; and high-handicap golfers, with a handicap of between 13 and 29 strokes. The myoelectric activity of the lumbar erector spinae (ES) and the external obliques (EO) was recorded via surface electromyography (EMG), whilst the golfers performed 20 drives. The root mean square (RMS) was calculated for each subject and the data for the ES and EO were normalised to the EMGs recorded whilst holding a mass equal to 5% of the subjects' body mass at arms length and whilst performing a double-leg raise, respectively. The results showed that the low-handicap LBP golfers tended to demonstrate reduced ES activity at the top of the backswing and at impact and greater EO activity throughout the swing. The high-handicap LBP golfers demonstrated considerably more ES activity compared with their asymptomatic counterparts, whilst EO activity tended to be similar between the high-handicap groups. The reduced ES activity demonstrated by the low-handicap LBP group may be associated with a reduced capacity to protect the spine and its surrounding structures at the top of the backswing and at impact, where the torsional loads are high. When considering this with the increased EO activity demonstrated by these golfers, it is reasonable to suggest that these golfers may be demonstrating characteristics/mechanisms that are responsible for or are a cause of LBP.