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The incidence and risk factors of dental injury in elementary and junior high school children in Niigata city were investigated for 9 years (1999-2007) in this study. A total of 383,273 students were analyzed and 1262 dental injuries found, including 1029 cases (males: 672, females: 357) in elementary school; and 233 cases (males: 168, females: 65) in junior high school. The incidence of dental injury in elementary and junior high school was 0.41% and 0.18% respectively. The number of injuries did not increase over nine years. Tooth fractures were most frequently seen in second grade of elementary school, and decreased as the grade increased. More than 70% of dental injuries were due to collisions and falling. The present study suggests that students in lower grades of elementary school have a high risk of tooth injury, and an intensive preventive program is necessary for this age group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated the results of medical support for an all-star youth soccer team in Niigata prefecture by physical therapists for 8 years (2002-2009). The incidence of acute injury was 162.9 per 1000 match hours per player. Seventy percent of injuries involved direct contusion of the lower extremities and ankle sprains, and 70% occurred during the second half of the game session. Intensive water supply was started from the 2005 season, and the incidence of acute injuries requiring treatment by the following day, or preventing play on the following day decreased from 162.9 to 85.7 per 1000 match hours per player, before and after starting the water supply, respectively. The results of this study indicate that medical support for soccer players is successfully managed by physical therapist. Furthermore, a good relationship with medical doctors, as well as good knowledge regarding emergency care is important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate 12 weeks of whole body vibration training (WBVT) in healthy subjects. Twenty subjects were divided into two groups at random: normal practice with the whole body vibration training group (WBVT group, n=10) and only normal practice group (control group, n=10). The WBVT group trained three times a week and continued for twelve weeks. After the exercise program, 8 in the WBVT group and 9 in the control group remained. For the subjects, lower muscle strength and lean body mass of the lower extremities were measured before the start of the experiment and after 12 weeks. No significant difference was observed though the numbers of the WBVT group increased slightly regarding muscle strength and lean body mass. In conclusion, effectiveness of the vibratory stimulation in increasing lower muscle strength and lean body mass could not be clarified. It is necessary to verify the effect continuously in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated the medical support system in the 2002 FIFA World Cup at Niigata stadium. In the stadium, 49 medical staff in total were assigned to seven aid stations. Three games were performed before a total of 106,500 spectators assembled in the stadium. The total number of the emergency cases was 156 and 8 cases were sent to hospital. Fortunately, there were no cases of death or severe medical conditions such as poly trauma. Sixty five percent of the cases occurred before kick-off. The current study indicates that, when a soccer game is held at a stadium with more than 30,000 people in Japan, we have to provide a medical support system which can handle more than 50 emergency cases and special attention should be given to the time before kick-off. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an evaluation of the results of the medical check on the athletes of the National Athletic Meeting in Niigata prefecture. From 1995 to 1998, only 9 of the 40 athletic parties participated in the medical examination: 285 athletes, comprised of 223 male athletes and 62 female athletes. The internal medicine check showed abnormality in 130 male athletes and 34 female athletes. In male athletes, leucocytosis was the most frequent finding, followed by ECG abnormality, and hyperlipidemia, respectively. In the female athletes, the most frequent findings were proteinuria, leucocytosis, hypotension and anemia, respectively. The orthopedic surgery cheek showed abnormality in 70 male athletes and 30 female athletes. In both male and female athletes, lumber lesion was most often seen followed by knee joint, shoulder joint and ankle joint, in this order. During the National Athletic Meeting, no athletes from Niigata prefecture had serious medical problems except one case of cervical spinal cord injury. The results of this study indicate that the medical check of the athletes at the National Athletic Meeting in Niigata prefecture was a significant factor in preventing serious medical conditions. However, the current system has several socio-economic problems that require improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We retrospectively reviewed 87 anterior cruciate ligament reconstructions using autogenous hamstring tendons with the Endobutton technique to investigate the relationship between bone tunnel enlargement and clinical outcome and to identify factors that contribute to the enlargement. The clinical outcome was evaluated using the Lysholm score and KT-1000 arthrometer. The location of the femoral tunnel with respect to Blumensaat's line, the tibial tunnel with respect to the tibial plateau, and the angle between the femoral tunnel and Blumensaat's line (femoral tunnel angle) were measured. Bone tunnel enlargement was observed in 32 patients (37%). Enlargement occurred in 22 of the femoral tunnels and 26 of the tibial tunnels. Enlargement of both tunnels occurred in 16 knees. There was no statistical difference in Lysholm scores or KT-1000 arthrometer measurements between the enlarged group and the unenlarged group. The femoral tunnel was placed more anteriorly in the enlarged femoral tunnel group than in the unenlarged femoral tunnel group. The tibial tunnel was placed more anteriorly in the enlarged tibial tunnel group than in the unenlarged tibial tunnel group. The femoral tunnel angle was significantly smaller in the enlarged femoral tunnel group than in the femoral unenlarged group. Gender, patient age, intraoperative isometricity, and graft size were not significant factors. Bone tunnel enlargement was not correlated with the clinical outcome measures. We conclude that the main factor associated with tunnel enlargement are the locations and angles of the tunnels. The windshield-wiper motion of the graft may be enhanced by changing tension in the graft due to tunnel malposition. An acute femoral tunnel angle may increase the mechanical stress on the anterior margin of the femoral tunnel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pre- and postoperative knee kinematics in unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) can be theoretically related to clinical outcome and longevity after UKA with regard to ligament function and the degree of arthritic changes. However, the preoperative knee kinematics of patients indicated for UKA remain to be elucidated, and it is also unclear whether the preoperative kinematics can be maintained by the UKA procedure. The objective of this study was to examine the in vivo pre- and postoperative three-dimensional knee kinematics in UKA while referencing the normal knee kinematics reported in our previous study. Methods: We analyzed the knee kinematics in 17 knees (14 patients) undergoing UKA via a three-dimensional to two-dimensional registration technique employing femoral condylar translation and femoral axial rotation. The pre- and postoperative knee kinematics during squat motion were evaluated in the same subjects, employing consistent evaluation parameters. Results: On average, both pre- and postoperative knee kinematics in the range 10-100° of knee flexion demonstrated near-consistent femoral external rotation and anterior translation of the medial condyle and posterior translation of the lateral condyle. However, the mean femoral external rotation angle and the posterior translation of the lateral condyle postoperatively were significantly smaller than the values observed preoperatively. Discussion: Although the patterns of preoperative knee motion were similar to those seen in normal knees, the magnitude of this motion varied widely between patients, so it was not necessarily representative of normal knees. These variations may be due to the varying degrees of arthritic changes caused by osteoarthritis. Although the patterns of knee kinematics were largely maintained by the UKA procedure, the causes of the significant reductions in the magnitude of motion upon performing the UKA procedure should be investigated in subsequent studies with a larger number of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]