Usefulness of Vocal Fatigue Index for Hypertension of Extrinsic Laryngeal Muscles

Background and Objectives This study compares Vocal Fatigue Index (VFI) scores according to the presence or absence of external laryngeal tension in hyperfunctional voice disorder. And through this, it is to confirm the usefulness of VFI to hypertension of extrinsic laryngeal muscles.Materials and Method The subjects were 61 female diagnosed with hyperfunctional voice disorder (hypertension group 41, non-hypertension group 20). The author palpated extrinsic laryngeal muscles for evaluation of hypertension and classified them as the presence or absence. The voice measurements were jitter, shimmer, Korean-Voice Handicap Index-10 (K-VHI-10), and Korean-Vocal Fatigue Index (K-VFI). The voice compared were according to the diagnosis and presence of hypertension only for patients with hyperfunctional voice disorder.Results As a result of comparing the voice measurement according to the presence or absence of hypertension, there was no significant difference in the acoustic variables, K-VHI-10 and K-VFI-Total, K-VFI-Fatigue. Whereas, K-VFI-Physical (p=0.006) and K-VFI-Rest (p=0.022) were significantly higher in the hypertension group.Conclusion These results indicate that the hypertension group has more physical discomfort and less voice recovery than the group without hypertension. It means that K-VFI can measure the physical discomfort and limitations of voice recovery due to hypertension of the external laryngeal muscle. The VFI can be used as one of the methods to evaluate the hypertension of the external laryngeal muscle in Hyperfunctional voice disorder.

Maturational effect on physical capacities and anabolic hormones in under-16 elite footballers: a cross-sectional study

Purpose The purposes of this study were to describe the fitness and hormonal levels according to playing time (PT) (i.e., PT during season less (PT1) or more (PT2) than 50% of the total time) and maturation level (ML) (i.e., normal (ML1) and early maturity levels (ML2)), and to analyze the differences between groups for the measures of aerobic capacity, anaerobic power, power performance, and hormonal concentrations. Methods Twenty-four youth footballers of a U16 team participated in this study. Anthropometric measures, maturity status, growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1), maximal oxygen uptake, fatigue index, and countermovement jump were collected. Results Significant differences were found between both PT and ML groups for maturational status, aerobic capacity, power performance, and IGF1 concentrations. The interaction of PT and ML revealed significant differences for maturity offset and power performance. When using the skeletal age as a covariant, the previously significant differences found were reduced only to the fatigue index measure. Conclusions The response variables analyzed in the present study seem to be influenced by PT and ML. This must be considered when planning training, and coaches must be sensible to these effects as they may assume a preponderant role in PT.

The Physiological Profile of Male Professional Soccer Players: The Effect of Playing Division

The purpose of this study was to present the physiological profile of male soccer players who compete in the professional (Division [D] 1, 2, 3) and semi-professional (D4) Greek soccer leagues, and to compare their physiological profile according to playing division. Using 1,095 players (age: 25.2 ± 4.7 years), twelve anthropometric and physiological characteristics (age, height, body mass, BMI, VO2max, velocity of VO2max velocity at ventilatory threshold, maximum heart rate, maximum lactate, squat jump, 35 m sprint and sprinting fatigue index) were assessed. Factorial analysis of variance revealed a significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced physiological profile amongst the professional, compared to semi-professional players, for 10 of the 12 characteristics assessed between divisions. Regarding aerobic parameters, velocity at maximum oxygen uptake was the variable which discriminated professional, from semi-professional players most. With reference to anaerobic parameters, the 35m sprint was the variable which differentiated players between divisions (i.e. D1/D2 vs. D3/D4). Overall, findings in this study present the physiological profile of soccer players within the specified Greek soccer divisions, with differences identified between professional, and semi-professional divisions. These findings suggest that advanced physiological profiles may contribute to a player’s progression to higher divisions of Greek professional soccer.

Effect of Supplementary Branch Chain Amino Acids on the Ability of Table Tennis Players by Image Analysis of Visual Sensors

The purpose of this article is to in-depth explore the specific effects of supplementation of branched-chain amino acids on table tennis performance and its mechanism. Athletic ability refers to the ability of a person to participate in sports and training. It is a comprehensive manifestation of a person’s physical form, quality, function, skills, and psychological abilities. From a biochemical point of view, the level of exercise capacity mainly depends on the energy supply, transfer, and utilization of energy during exercise. The metabolic basis of exercise capacity and its influencing factors, the central and peripheral causes of sports fatigue, and the general law of the recovery of consumed substances after exercise provide a theoretical basis for athletes’ selection of talents, evaluation of training effects, and formulation of training plans. The main function of the vision sensor is to obtain enough of the most primitive images to be processed by the machine vision system. Use the latest vision sensor technology for in-depth research. This article takes 20 professional table tennis players with the same sports score as the research object and divides the athletes into the control group and observation group supplemented with branch chain amino acids. For the observation group, the exercise plan is to design two one-hour table tennis games, divided into two days, with a 10-minute break after half an hour of the game, and the athletes in the observation group to have a weight of 0.3 g/kg before and during the rest of the game. Weight measurement supplemented with branched-chain amino acids, the control group, athletes supplemented with the same amount of ordinary mineral water, the athletes’ fatigue index, endurance index, and reaction ability index were scored, and the athlete’s blood was drawn to test the sports-related biochemical indicators after the end of table tennis. The results of the study showed that after supplementation with branched-chain amino acids, the fatigue index of the athletes in the observation group was ( 7.5 ± 1.2 ), the fatigue index of the control group was ( 11.2 ± 1.5 ), the endurance index of the observation group was ( 28.4 ± 4.8 ), that of the control group was ( 19.6 ± 3.7 ), the reaction ability index of the observation group was ( 18.4 ± 4.2 ), and the control group was ( 12.3 ± 2.8 ). At the same time, the athletes’ plasma antioxidant capacity and metabolism level of the observation group were significantly higher than those of the control group. Therefore, it can be seen that supplementing branched-chain amino acids can effectively improve the athletic ability of table tennis players.

Effects of Capsiate Supplementation on Maximal Voluntary Contraction in Healthy Men

This study aimed to investigate the effects of acute capsaicin analog (Capsiate - CAP) supplementation on maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) performance in healthy young men. Thirteen subjects (25.2±3.2 yrs) participated in the present study. In two different days separated by one week, the subjects ingested capsiate (12 mg) or placebo (starch: 12 mg) 45 minutes before a MVIC test. The MVIC test consisted of five 10-second knee extension maximal isometric contractions with 45 seconds of recovery between efforts. The peak force, mean force, minimum force, fatigue index, and area under the curve of each contraction were calculated. Main condition effect was found, with higher values of peak force (+4.83%, F=6.867, p=0.02), fatigue index (+8.96%, F=5.228, p=0.041), and area under the curve (+4.19%, F=4.774, p=0.04) for CAP compared to placebo, however, no interaction effect was found for any variable (F=0.090 to 1.356, p≥0.276). In summary, healthy young men produced higher maximal isometric force and delayed fatigue in the CAP condition compared to placebo condition (condition effect) but without significant difference between each effort.

Does Post-Activation Potentiation Protocols affect Anaerobic Performance in women Taolu Wushu Athletes?

Introduction: Post-activation potentiation has an influence on short duration and high intensity function. This study aimed to answer this question whether post-activation potentiation protocol in different models has effect on anaerobic performance in women Wushu athletes. Methods: Women elite Taolu Wushu athletes participated in current crossover design study. (i) specific Wushu WU (Wushu WU); (ii) Strength-based WU (StreWU); and (iii) Speed-based WU (SpeWU) were performed by Wushu athletes in three inconsecutive days separated by 48 h. Five minutes after each WU protocols, Running-Based Anaerobic Sprint Test (RAST) was performed. Heart rate, immediately, and blood lactate were measured for 4 times: before WU protocols, immediately after WU protocols, before RAST, immediately after RAST.Results: Data analysis revealed significant differences in 4 time points of lactate levels (p=0.001; d=1.71), although no significant difference among protocols was observed. Values of variables obtained from RAST showed that StreWU had a significant impact on minimum power (p<0.05; d=-0.795) comparing to WushuWU and on fatigue index comparing to SpeWU (p<0.05; d=-0.799). No significant differences were found among the WU protocols for peak power and mean power.Conclusion: All WU protocols had mostly the same effect, and PAP was not very effective. Possibly, the WU protocols generated too much fatigue, due to the short-term rest time. However, longer intervals would likely enter the realm of post-activation performance enhancement, which is distinct from PAP.

Effects of Ibuprofen Use on Lymphocyte Count and Oxidative Stress in Elite Paralympic Powerlifting

Background: Paralympic Powerlifting (PP) training tends to promote fatigue and oxidative stress. Objective: To analyze the effects of ibuprofen use on performance and oxidative stress in post-training PP athletes. Methodology: Ten national level PP athletes (age: 27.13 ± 5.57) were analyzed for oxidative stress in post-training. The study was carried out in three weeks, (1) familiarization and (2 and 3) evaluated the recovery with the use of a placebo (PLA) and ibuprofen (IBU), 800 mg. The Peak Torque (PT), Torque Development Rate (TDR), Fatigue Index (FI), reactive substances to thiobarbituric acid (TBARS) and sulfhydryl groups (SH) were evaluated. The training consisted of five sets of five repetitions (80–90%) 1-Repetition Maximum (1-RM) in the bench press. Results: The IBU showed a higher PT (24 and 48 h, p = 0.04, ɳ2 p = 0.39), a lower FI (24 h, p = 0.01, ɳ2p = 0.74) and an increased lymphocyte count (p < 0.001; ɳ2p = 4.36). There was no change in oxidative stress. Conclusions: The use of IBU provided improvements in strength and did not protect against oxidative stress.

Fatigue, Emotion, and Cognitive Performance in Simulated Long-Duration, Single-Piloted Flight Missions

BACKGROUND: Fatigue of air force pilots has become an increasing concern due to changes in mission characteristics. In the current study we investigated fatigue, emotions, and cognitive performance in a simulated 11-h mission in the 39 Gripen fighter aircraft. METHODS: A total of 12 subjects were evaluated in a high-fidelity dynamic flight simulator for 12 consecutive hours. Perceived fatigue was measured by the Samn-Perelli Fatigue Index (SPFI). Emotions were assessed with the Circumplex Affect Space. Cognitive performance was assessed by five cognitive tasks. RESULTS: Significant increase in self-reported fatigue, general decrease in two positive emotional states, as well increase of one negative emotional state occurred after approximately 7 h into the mission. Self-reported fatigue negatively correlated with enthusiasm and cheerfulness (r 0.75; 0.49, respectively) and positively correlated with boredom and gloominess (r 0.61; r 0.30, respectively). Response time in the low-order task negatively correlated with enthusiasm, cheerfulness and calmness (r 0.44; r 0.41; r 0.37, respectively) and positively correlated with boredom and anxiousness (r 0.37; r 0.28, respectively). Mission duration had an adverse impact on emotions in these environmental conditions, particularly after 7 h. DISCUSSION: These results contribute to the understanding of fatigue development in general and of emotion-cognition relationships. These findings emphasize that both emotional states and the type of cognitive tasks to be performed should be considered for planning long-duration missions in single-piloted fighter aircrafts as to increase the probability of missions success. Rosa E, Gronkvist M, Kolegard R, Dahlstrom N, Knez I, Ljung R, Willander J. Fatigue, emotion, and cognitive performance in simulated long-duration, single-piloted flight missions. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2021; 92(9):710719.