Peculiarities of training specialists in the field of physical education and sports in higher education institutions of modern Romania

The article considers the peculiarities of training in the field of physical education and sports at specialized faculties on the example of Alexandru Ioan Cuza University. Iasi, highlighted and characterized the main provisions of the charter of the faculty, curriculum and study programs, etc. It is determined that the faculty provides training in the specialties "Physical Education and Sports", "Physical Therapy" and "Sports and Physical Activity" (bachelor); "Fitness and body aesthetics", "Leisure and extreme sports", "Therapeutic physical training in sports traumatology", "Physiotherapy in sports traumatology" (Chisinau, Republic of Moldova) and "School physical education and sports" (master's degree) future teachers of physical education and sports, coaches, physiotherapists, sports instructors, etc. The content and structure of syllabuses for the preparation of licensees / bachelors and masters are analyzed, the topics of lectures, seminars and practical academic classes are published, the hourly distribution is determined.

The long road to recovery: at six months since the first COVID-19 wave, elective orthopedic care has still not fully recovered in Belgium

Purpose The primary aim of our study was to investigate elective orthopaedic care during the first wave government-imposed COVID-19 lockdown and at four weeks and 21 weeks after resuming elective care. The secondary aim of our study was to evaluate the implementation of the European Society of Sports Traumatology, Knee Surgery and Arthroscopy (ESSKA) COVID-19 Guidelines and Recommendations for Resuming Elective Surgery in the clinical practice of Belgian knee surgeons. Methods We sent three anonymous online surveys to 102 Belgian Knee Society members (BKS) at times mentioned above. Addressed topics were: (1) participant demographics, (2) elective surgeries, (3) outpatient visits, (4) ESSKA Guidelines, (5) patient and surgeon safety. Results During the COVID-19 lockdown, there was a decrease of 97% in elective knee surgeries and 91% in outpatient visits. At four and 21 weeks after resuming elective care, volumes were respectively 67% and 89% for elective surgeries and 81% and 91% for outpatient visits. Regarding ESSKA guidelines, 91% of surgeons had no COVID-19 testing prior to resuming elective care. Ninety-two per cent reported preoperative (< 72 h) patient PCR testing, and 45% gave preference to young patients without comorbidities. Seventy-two per cent did not use additional personal protective equipment (PPE) if a patient PCR test was negative. Forty-nine per cent continued to give preference to general anaesthesia. Conclusion Our study shows that elective surgeries and outpatient visits were almost completely interrupted during the COVID-19 lockdown and were still below normal at four and 21 weeks after resuming elective care. Regarding ESSKA COVID-19 guidelines, our study observes good compliance in preoperative patient COVID-19 testing, but lower compliance for preoperative health care personnel testing, patient selection, use of PPE, and locoregional anaesthesia. Level of Evidence V

Emerging research trends and foci of studies on the meniscus: A bibliometric analysis

Introduction: Meniscus has always been the focus of sport medicine with thousands of articles published annually. Few study has tried to analyze these papers with bibliometric methods. The purpose of this study is to statistically analyze the output of meniscus research and determine emerging research trends and hot spots. Methods: Papers related to the meniscus published from 2010 to 2019 were downloaded from the Web of Science Core Collection. Information about annual publications and journal distribution was analyzed by Excel 2016. Co-occurrence analysis of the countries/regions, institutions, authors, and keywords were performed with CiteSpace V, which was also used to perform a co-cited analysis of the references and generate corresponding knowledge maps as well as detect burst keywords. Results: A total of 10,066 articles regarding meniscus were published between 2010 and 2019. The number of articles annual about meniscus increased from 786 to 1300. Knee Surgery Sports Traumatology Arthroscopy, the United States, University of Pittsburgh, and LaPrade RF were journal, country, institution, and author with the most publications, respectively. Makris EA et al. in 2011 was the most cited articles, with a citation of 198. Osteoarthritis, tear repair, anterior cruciate ligament, and articular cartilage were keywords with occurrence of more than 500. Meniscal extrusion, scaffold, and tissue engineering were terms with most burst strength. Conclusions: Meniscus-related publications showed a gradual rising trend from 2010 to 2019. Osteoarthritis, tear repairs, and the anterior cruciate ligament are the current research hot spots. Extrusion and scaffolds may be the frontiers of meniscus research in the next few years. Level of evidence: IV.

The Tecar Therapy to Support Sports Traumatology

The Tecar therapy is evidence of the way in which advanced technology can be used in sports medicine, for the rehabilitation of traumas. The TECAR technology is not painful, invasive or hard to tolerate, without side effects, with a time limit and several sessions being assimilated within the recovery process. The purpose of this paper is to use this therapyin sports traumatology. The subjects of the research were two athletes practicing performance handball with left inguinal ligamentous and muscular sprain and epicondylitis of the higher limb. After applying the Tecar therapy and the physical therapy program, we have noted a favourable recovery of the two athletes. This study confirms the efficiency of this therapy in the recovery of sportstraumas. Whereas this technology is beneficial, with visible results, its use without physical therapy can create a “boomerang effect”.