Mark A. Merrick

The Effects of Land vs. Aquatic Plyometrics on Power, Torque, Velocity, and Muscle Soreness in Women

The purpose of this study was to compare changes in performance indicators (power, torque, and velocity) and muscle soreness between plyometric training on land and in water. Thirty-two college age women were randomly assigned to 8 weeks of an identical plyometric training program on land or in an aquatic setting. Performance indicators were assessed pretraining, midtraining, and posttraining. Muscle soreness (ordinal scale) and pain sensitivity (palpation) were assessed after a training bout (0, 48, and 96 hours) during the first week of training and when training intensity was increased (weeks 3 and 6). Performance indictors increased for both groups (pretraining < midtraining < posttraining, p < 0.001). Muscle soreness was significantly greater in the land compared to the aquatic plyometric training group at baseline and each time training intensity was increased, p = 0.01. Aquatic plyometrics provided the same performance enhancement benefits as land plyometrics with significantly less muscle soreness.

Preliminary comparison of bromelain and Ibuprofen for delayed onset muscle soreness management.

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to determine whether a common bromelain regimen or common ibuprofen regimen are effective in resolving pain and muscle dysfunction associated with delayed onset muscle soreness of the elbow flexors. DesignA randomized, double-blinded, repeated measures design was used for this study. SettingThe study was performed in the Sports Injury Research Lab at an NCAA Division I university. ParticipantsForty subjects who had not participated in an upper body resistance-training program 3 months prior to the study, suffered pain or injury in the nondominant arm, or experienced an adverse response to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or pineapple (bromelain source) were recruited. Thirty-nine subjects finished the study. InterventionsActive range of motion (ROM), perceived pain, and peak concentric torque measurements of the nondominant arm were taken prior to and 24, 48, 72, and 96 hours following an eccentric exercise protocol of the elbow flexors. Subjects were assigned to one of four treatment groups (bromelain 300 mg t.i.d., ibuprofen 400 mg t.i.d., placebo t.i.d., and control) and began treatment immediately following the exercise protocol. Main Outcome MeasuresNo differences among treatments were observed for any of the dependent variables at any time. ROM deficits and pain peaked between 48 and 72 hours. Peak torque deficiencies were observed between 24 and 72 hours. ConclusionsIngestion of bromelain and ibuprofen had no effect on elbow flexor pain, loss of ROM, or loss of concentric peak torque as a result of an eccentric exercise regimen.

Ultrasound mediated destruction of multifunctional microbubbles for image guided delivery of oxygen and drugs

We synthesized multifunctional activatible microbubbles (MAMs) for ultrasound mediated delivery of oxygen and drugs with both ultrasound and fluorescence imaging guidance. Oxygen enriched perfluorocarbon (PFC) compound was encapsulated in liposome microbubbles (MBs) by a modified emulsification process. DiI dye was loaded as a model drug. The ultrasound targeted microbubble destruction (UTMD) process was guided by both ultrasonography and fluorescence imaging modalities. The process was validated in both a dialysis membrane tube model and a porcine carotid artery model. Our experiment results show that the UTMD process effectively facilitates the controlled delivery of oxygen and drug at the disease site and that the MAM agent enables ultrasound and fluorescence imaging guidance of the UTMD process. The proposed MAM agent can be potentially used for UTMD-mediated combination therapy in hypoxic ovarian cancer.

Cold water immersion to improve postexercise recovery: a meta-analysis.

ing different injury sites for analysis may actually obscure individually favorable applications. The authors adopted MRI as the gold standard for comparison with TUS, but they interpreted the MRI grading system that they used relatively loosely. The inclusion of bone marrow edema as a characteristic of grade 1 bone stress injury differs from Fredericson’s original system (Fredericson’s definition is “Mild-to-moderate periosteal edema on T2-weighted images only, with no focal bone marrow abnormality” versus Papalada’s “periosteal and bone marrow edema.”) The authors also do not mention that Fredericson’s system was developed specifically for tibial stress injuries. For these reasons, their analyses of TUS outcomes in relation to MRI severity grades are difficult to interpret. The conclusion of Papalada et al that “.TUS is a reliable, reproducible procedure, easy to perform in an office setup or at the pitch side” is not entirely representative of the nearly 20% of false negatives reported nor the particularly poor sensitivity of TUS for lowgrade injuries. Although the data, as collected, are insufficient to support the authors’ conclusions, the appealing cost and utility of TUS justifies further investigation. Of particular clinical significance, however, is the elephant in the room—the fact that the TUS procedure is based on producing pain at the site of injury, whereas other diagnostic imaging modalities are essentially painless. Patient feedback with respect to test acceptability will be an important outcome measure in future work.