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One year of training data from 8 elite orienteers were divided into a transition phase (TP), general preparatory phase (GPP), specific preparatory phase (SPP), and competition phase (CP). Average weekly training volume and frequency, hours at different intensities (zones 1–3), cross-training, running, orienteering, interval training, continuous training, and competition were calculated. Training volume was higher in GPP than TP, SPP, and CP (14.9 vs 9.7, 11.5, and 10.6 h/wk, P < .05). Training frequency was higher in GPP than TP (10 vs 7.5 sessions/wk, P < .05). Zone 1 training was higher in GPP than TP, SPP, and CP (11.3 vs 7.1, 8.3, and 7.7 h/wk, P < .05). Zone 3 training was higher in SPP and CP than in TP and GPP (0.9 and 1.1 vs 1.6 and 1.5 h/ wk, P < .05). Cross-training was higher in GPP than SPP and CP (4.3 vs 0.8 h/wk, P < .05). Interval training was higher in GPP than TP, SPP, and CP (0.7 vs 0.3 h/wk, P < .05). High-intensity continuous training was higher in GPP than CP (0.9 vs 0.4 h/ wk, P < .05), while competition was higher in SPP and CP than in TP and GPP (1.3 and 1.5 vs 0.6 and 0.3 h/wk, P < .01). In conclusion, these champion endurance athletes achieved a progressive reduction in total training volume from GPP to CP via a shortening of each individual session while the number of training sessions remained unchanged. This decrease in training volume was primarily due to a reduction in the number of hours of low-intensity, non-sport-specific cross-training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The overall objective of this review was to investigate the role and development of sprinting speed in soccer. Time-motion analyses show that short sprints occur frequently during soccer games. Straight sprinting is the most frequent action before goals, both for the scoring and assisting player. Straight-line sprinting velocity (both acceleration and maximal sprinting speed), certain agility skills, and repeated-sprint ability are shown to distinguish groups from different performance levels. Professional players have become faster over time, indicating that sprinting skills are becoming more and more important in modern soccer. In research literature, the majority of soccer-related training interventions have provided positive effects on sprinting capabilities, leading to the assumption that all kinds of training can be performed with success. However, most successful intervention studies are time consuming and challenging to incorporate into the overall soccer training program. Even though the principle of specificity is clearly present, several questions remain regarding the optimal training methods within the larger context of the team-sport setting. Considering time-efficiency effects, soccer players may benefit more by performing sprint-training regimens similar to the progression model used in strength training and by world-leading athletics practitioners, compared with the majority of guidelines that traditionally have been presented in research literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Changes in cardiac power parameters incorporate changes in both aortic flow and blood pressure. We hypothesized that dynamic and non-dynamic cardiac power parameters would track hypovolemia better than equivalent flow- and pressure parameters, both during spontaneous breathing and non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV). Methods: Fourteen healthy volunteers underwent lower body negative pressure (LBNP) of 0, -20, -40, -60 and -80 mmHg to simulate hypovolemia, both during spontaneous breathing and during NPPV. We recorded aortic flow using suprasternal ultrasound Doppler and blood pressure using Finometer, and calculated dynamic and non-dynamic parameters of cardiac power, flow and blood pressure. These were assessed on their association with LBNP-levels. Results: Respiratory variation in peak aortic flow was the dynamic parameter most affected during spontaneous breathing increasing 103 % (p <0.001) from baseline to LBNP-80 mmHg. Respiratory variation in pulse pressure was the most affected dynamic parameter during NPPV, increasing 119 % (p <0.001) from baseline to LBNP -80 mmHg. The cardiac power integral was the most affected non-dynamic parameter falling 59 % (p <0.001) from baseline to LBNP -80 mmHg during spontaneous breathing, and 68 % (p <0.001) during NPPV. Conclusions: Dynamic cardiac power parameters were not better than dynamic flow- and pressure parameters at tracking hypovolemia, seemingly due to previously unknown variation in peripheral vascular resistance matching respiratory changes in hemodynamics. Of non-dynamic parameters, the power parameters track hypovolemia slightly better than equivalent flow parameters, and far better than equivalent pressure parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose This study aimed to assess the effects of supervised exercise training (SET) after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) compared with PTA alone on physical function, limb hemodynamics and health-related quality of life in patients with intermittent claudication. Methods Fifty patients who all underwent PTA for intermittent claudication were included in the study. Both groups received usual post-operative care. In addition, the intervention group performed two sessions of hospital-based SET and one home-based exercise session per week for 12 weeks after PTA. The control group did not receive any additional follow-up regarding exercise. The primary outcome was the result of a standardized 6-minute walk test. Secondary outcomes were the treadmill maximum walking distance, treadmill pain-free walking distance, ankle-brachial index, pulse volume recording on the leg and ultrasound scanning. Health-related quality of life was measured using the Short Form 36 and the Claudication Scale. Results All measures, except for the Short Form 36 domain of mental health, showed statistically significant positive changes from baseline to 3 months for both groups ( p < 0.05). At 3 months, there was a trend towards better results for the intervention group compared with the control group. The median improvement from baseline to 3 months for the 6-minute walk test was 66 m for the intervention group and 45 m for the control group. For maximum walking distance, the median improvement was 251 m for the intervention group and 93 m for the control group. Discussion Supervised exercise training after endovascular treatment for patients with intermittent claudication led to greater positive changes after 3 months in the intervention group compared with the control group. The present study's trends of better results with SET after PTA add to the emerging existing evidence, which should encourage physiotherapy practice to offer SET for this patient group. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) screening has been offered to 65-year-old men living in Oslo, Norway, since May 2011. A significant number of AAA-related deaths occurred in individuals who are not eligible for screening. The primary aim of this study was to describe the group of patients admitted to Oslo University Hospital with a ruptured AAA after the implementation of the local AAA screening project. The following parameters were investigated: AAA detection before rupture, surveillance status, eligibility for screening, and comorbidities. We also sought to compare outcomes (repair rates and 30-day mortality) between patients with and without an incidentally detected AAA prior to rupture., Methods: This cohort study included patients admitted acutely to Oslo University Hospital due to a symptomatic or ruptured AAA in the period January 2011 to December 2022. Data on demographics, prior AAA detection, surveillance status, treatment, and mortality were collected retrospectively through electronic medical records., Results: We identified 200 patients with a symptomatic or ruptured AAA, among which 79 (40%) had an AAA detected before rupture-one (1%) through screening and 78 (39%) incidentally. Up to 30% of the incidentally detected AAAs were not under any surveillance. Six patients were found eligible for screening: one had attended, three were non-attenders, and two had not been invited. Patients with an incidentally detected AAA before rupture had a more advanced age and a significantly higher degree of comorbidities than patients without a previously detected AAA, and the repair rates in these groups were 56% and 84%, respectively (P < 0.001). Adjusted for comorbidities and risk factors, the odds ratio for repair among patients with incidentally detected AAA was 0.56 (P = 0.292). The 30-day mortality was not significantly different between the two groups (P = 0.097)., Conclusions: Most patients with a ruptured AAA were not eligible for screening, but 39% of the patients had an incidentally detected AAA prior to rupture. Standardized reporting and follow-up of incidentally detected AAAs is thus identified as an additional measure to organized screening in the effort to reduce AAA-related mortality., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: We investigated the effects of lower extremity intermittent negative pressure (INP) treatment for 1 hour two times daily for 12 weeks on the walking distance of patients with intermittent claudication (IC)., Methods: Patients with IC were randomized to treatment with -40 mm Hg INP (treatment group) or -10 mm Hg INP (sham control group). Pain-free walking distance (PWD) and maximal walking distance (MWD) on a treadmill, resting and postexercise ankle-brachial index, resting and postischemic blood flow (plethysmography), and quality of life (EQ-5D-5L and Vascuqol-6) were measured at baseline and after 12 weeks of treatment., Results: A total of 72 patients were randomized, and 63 had data available for the intention-to-treat analyses. The between-group comparisons showed a significant change in the PWD, favoring the treatment group over the sham control group (estimated treatment effect, 50 m; 95% confidence interval [CI], 11-89; P = .014). The PWD had increased by 68 m (P < .001) in the treatment group and 18 m (P = .064) in the sham control group. No significant difference was found in the change in the MWD between the two groups (estimated treatment effect, 42 m; 95% CI, -14 to 97; P = .139). The MWD had increased by 62 m (P = .006) in the treatment group and 20 m (P = .265) in the sham control group. For patients with a baseline PWD of <200 m (n = 56), significant changes had occurred in both PWD and MWD between the two groups, favoring the treatment group (estimated treatment effect, 42 m; 95% CI, 2-83; P = .042; and estimated treatment effect, 62 m; 95% CI, 5-118; P = .032; respectively). Both overall and for the group of patients with a PWD <200 m, no significant differences were found in the changes in the resting and postexercise ankle-brachial index, resting and postischemic blood flow, or quality of life parameters between the two groups., Conclusions: Treatment with -40 mm Hg INP increased the PWD compared with sham treatment in patients with IC. For the patients with a baseline PWD of <200 m, an increase was found in both PWD and MWD compared with sham treatment., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Unlabelled: The aim of this study was to explore the effects during 12 months follow-up of 12 weeks of supervised exercise therapy (SET) after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) compared to PTA alone on physical function, limb hemodynamics and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with intermittent claudication. Fifty patients were randomised to an intervention or a control group. Both groups received usual post-operative care and follow-up measurements at three, six and 12 months after PTA. The intervention group performed 12 weeks of SET after PTA. The control group did not receive any additional follow-up regarding exercise. During the 12 months' follow-up, the members of the intervention group had significantly better walking distance than the control group. The intervention group had a significantly higher HRQoL score in the physical component score of the SF-36, and the domains of physical function, bodily pain and vitality. For limb hemodynamics, there was a non-significant trend towards better results in the intervention group compared to the control group., Conclusion: SET after PTA yielded statistically significantly better results for walking distance and HRQoL in the intervention group than the control group during the 12 months of follow-up.

The present study aimed to explore the prevalence of pre-capillary pulmonary hypertension (PH) and characterise haemodynamic vascular responses to physical exercise in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) outpatients, where left ventricular dysfunction and comorbidities were excluded. 98 patients with COPD underwent right heart catheterisation at rest and during supine exercise. Mean pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa), pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (Ppcw) and cardiac output (CO) were measured at rest and during exercise. Exercise-induced increase in mean Ppa was interpreted relative to increase in blood flow, mean Ppa/CO, workload (W) and mean Ppa/W. Pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) and pulmonary artery compliance (PAC) were calculated. PH at rest was defined as mean Ppa at rest ≥25 mmHg and Ppcw at rest <15 mmHg. Prevalence of PH was 5%, 27% and 53% in Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease stages II, III and IV, respectively. The absolute exercise-induced rise in mean Ppa did not differ between subjects with and without PH. Patients without PH showed similar abnormal haemodynamic responses to exercise as the PH group, with increased PVR, reduced PAC and steeper slopes for mean Ppa/CO and mean Ppa/W. Exercise revealed abnormal physiological haemodynamic responses in the majority of the COPD patients. The future definition of PH on exercise in COPD should rely on the slope of mean Ppa related to cardiac output and workload rather than the absolute values of mean Ppa.