Introduction:People suffering from tendinopathies exhibit reduced mobility due to the pain caused by the movement of the tendons involved. Recently, shockwave therapy has been used as a treatment option, which is non-invasive, simpler, faster and safer.Aims:To record the intensity of the pain, the functionality of the upper and lower limbs and quality of life before treatment with shock waves, immediately after the treatment and the 4-week follow-up. Methodology:The sample consisted of 384 patients, suffering from a tendinopathy. 326 patients constituted the shockwave intervention groups and 58 patients made up the control groups. The researchers created a self-administered questionnaire (University of Peloponnese Pain, Functionality and Quality of Life Questionnaire) in which the intensity of pain, functionality and quality of life were evaluated on a five-point Likert scale, before, immediately after the treatment and at a 4-week follow-up.Results:The pain reduction and the improvement of functionality and quality of life after shockwave treatment increased by at least two points on the five-point Likert scale both post-treatment (p<0,001) and at a 4-week follow-up (p<0,001) compared to post-treatment in elbow tendinopathy, Achilles tendinopathy, plantar fasciitis and rotator cuff tendinopathy.Conclusions:Shockwave therapy significantly reduced the pain that accompanies tendinopathies and improves functionality and quality of life. It might be first choice because of its effectiveness and safety.

Introduction: Patients with plantar fasciitis usually suffer from reduced mobility due to the pain caused by the movement of the tendons involved. Aim: This study was aimed to compare both shockwave and ultrasound therapies in patients with plantar fasciitis by assessing the pain intensity, and both the functionality of the lower limbs and the quality of life impairments. Methods: Total amount of 88 patients with plantar fasciitis constituted the shockwave group, 56 the ultrasound group and 15 the control group. The self-administered questionnaire “University of Peloponnese Pain, Functionality and Quality of Life Questionnaire” was used. The intensity of pain, functionality impairment and quality of life impairment were evaluated on a five-point Likert scale, before treatment, immediately after and at 4-week follow-up. Results: The pain reduction and the improvement of functionality and quality of life after shockwave treatment and ultrasound treatment significantly increased both post-treatment (p<0,001) and at the 4-week follow-up (p<0,001) compared to post-treatment. However, the improvements in the ultrasound group were not as pronounced as in shockwave group (p<0,001). Conclusions: Although both radial shockwave and ultrasound therapies were found to be effective in patients with plantar fasciitis, the statistical analysis showed that radial shockwave is significantly more effective than ultrasound therapy.

Nutrient profiling systems (NPS) assist consumers in food choices. Several scores based on NPS have been proposed, but data on their clinical application are lacking. The food compass score (FCS) is a newly developed NPS per 100 kcal (from 1 “least healthy” to 100 “most healthy”). We examined the correlations of FCS with other indices, food groups, and meal patterns. A total of 346 students of the University of the Peloponnese (269 women and 77 men) participated. Dietary habits were evaluated with a food frequency questionnaire, and FCS, health star rating score (HSR), and MedDietScore were computed. Meal and snack frequency consumption was reported. Principal component analysis revealed three meal patterns: “early eater” (breakfast, morning snack and afternoon snack), “medium eater” (lunch and dinner), and “late eater” (bedtime snack). Pearson partial correlations between ranked variables were used to test the correlation coefficients between FCS, other scores, and meal patterns, after adjustment for age, sex, BMI, and underreporting. FCS was positively correlated to HSR (rho = 0.761, p ≤ 0.001) in a multi-adjusted analysis. In the highest tertile of MedDietScore FCS was also positively correlated to MedDietScore (rho = 0.379, p < 0.001). The FCS was positively correlated with juices, high-fat dairy, vegetables, legumes, fruits, and olive oil and negatively correlated with sodas, alcoholic drinks, red meat, refined grains, sweets, fats other than olive oil, fast foods, and coffee. In addition, it related positively to the “early eater” pattern (rho = 0.207, p < 0.001). The FCS was associated with other quality indices and better nutritional habits, such as being an early eater.

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The ketogenic diet (KD), which is low in carbohydrates and high to normal in fat and protein, has been traditionally used in epilepsy for the last 100 years. More recently, its application in obesity has been introduced. The present review aimed to investigate the effects of the KD on vitamin D. In total, five studies were done in healthy adults, one in subjects with type 2 diabetes, and seven in subjects with epilepsy that assessed the levels of vitamin D pre- and post-intervention. In the majority of studies, increases in circulating vitamin D were reported. The relationship of the KD with vitamin D was explained through several mechanisms: ketone bodies, macronutrient intake, the status levels of other fat-soluble vitamins, weight loss, changes in the hormonal milieu, and effects on gut microbiota. Moreover, potential nutrient–gene-related interactions were discussed. There is still a need to conduct multiple arm studies to compare the effects of the KD versus other diets and better decipher the particular effects of the KD on vitamin D levels and metabolism. Moreover, differentiations of the diet’s effects according to sex and genetic makeup should be investigated to prescribe KDs on a more personalized basis.