Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 46-52).

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of a twelve-week hydrotherapy group exercise programme on selected health-related fitness variables in older women with type II diabetes mellitus. This study included the testing of blood glucose levels, blood anthropometrical profile, body mass, height, body mass index, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, upper body flexibility, lower body flexibility, grip strength, upper body and lower body muscular strength and endurance as well as aerobic endurance. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were used for this study utilising a quasiexperimental research design. A comparison group pre-test and post-test experimental design was employed at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Biokinetics and Sports Science Unit. Approximately 16 senior female participants took part in the study. Participants were identified through convenience sampling and snowball sampling, of which, all the participants were clinically diagnosed with type II diabetes mellitus and had completed the study. The hydrotherapy participants (experimental group), took part in water-based (hydrotherapy) exercises three times a week for a period of twelve weeks. The hydrotherapy exercises began with a light half-hour workout per session and were progressively increased in intensity, duration, and number of the exercises performed. The participants not participating in the hydrotherapy exercises (control group) were instructed to remain sedentary throughout the duration of the intervention period. The dependant variables were gathered as raw data and analysed using descriptive statistics to form the means, standard deviations, medians, minimum and maximum values. Post hoc analysis was performed to determine whether differences existed between the experimental group and control group. Cohen’s D test was used to determine pre- and post-test differences for both groups to determine practical significance. An analysis of the results revealed significant improvements in some of the selected health and physical fitness parameters such as, upper body and lower body flexibility, upper and lower body muscular strength and endurance, as well as aerobic endurance. iii The aim and objectives of the study in exploring the effect of hydrotherapy as an intervention strategy to promote health and physical fitness in persons with type II diabetes mellitus were supported by the data collected in the pre-test and post-test analyses of the variables.

The main purpose of this study was to determine which method of tendon rehabilitation - the "eccentric squat" exercise or the universal gym "leg extension/leg curl" exercise produces a more significant result in terms of recovery in the treatment of chronic patellar tendonitis. A second objective was to determine if a relationship existed between patients who presented with patellar tendonitis and certain biomechanical malalignments and/or muscle imbalances that those patients might have possessed. Nineteen patients with chronic patellar tendonitis were studied. They were selected on the basis that they had a history of athletic participation, wore no orthotics and had had the symptoms of patellar tendonitis greater than four weeks. Subjects were randomly placed in either of two groups: training using the "eccentric squat" exercise or training using the "leg extension/ leg curl" exercise. Subjects were clinically and biomechanically examined by a physician and placed on the twelve week exercise program. They were examined and tested at 0, 6 and 12 weeks. Testing included the following variables: thigh circumference measured 4.4 and 10 centimeters above the medial knee joint line, quadricep and hamstring moment of force as measured on the Cybex at 30 degrees per second and a subjective evaluation of pain rated on a scale from 1 to 10. There was no significant difference between the groups in either quadricep or hamstring moment of force, however hamstring moment of force significantly increased in both groups. There was a significant difference in pain ratings between the groups averaged over the three testing sessions (p <0.01). The group training with the "eccentric squat" exercise decreased in pain more than the group performing the "leg extension/leg curl" exercise. Also, the "eccentric squat" group produced twice as many "pain free" subjects at the end of the program than the other group. With the retrospective clinical data on the 129 patellar tendonitis patients seen at the B.C. Sports Medicine Clinic over a three year period, it appears that the average structural malalignment of the patellar tendonitis patient is no different from the average biomechanical problems any athlete may present with who has any number of difference overuse problems. It appears indicated to recommend the use of the "eccentric squat" exercise as an approach towards the conservative management of chronic patellar tendonitis. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

No description available.

D.Phil. / Chronic pain is a devastating problem and one of the leading causes of disability internationally with an estimated 25-30% of people in industrialised nations suffering from it. Various approaches are available for the treatment of chronic pain with exercise therapy is often the last resort, after all else has failed. The present study was motivated by the growing prevalence of chronic pain patients and the recent progress in pain science. This study made use of a quasi-experimental design where randomization was a function of participant convenience. It made use of a Pre-Test Post-Test battery consisting both of self-report questionnaires and of a physical assessment evaluating components of chronic pain patients’ experience prior to and following a combined therapeutic intervention programme of 12 sessions. Follow- up was at 12 months. The objectives were to integrate patient reconceptualization of pain by means of an active approach combining pain education and exercise therapy, and to determine the effect of a change in pain cognition on the outcome compared to a control group receiving exercise therapy only. A heterogeneous group of chronic pain patients were randomized into 2 groups who both received exercise therapy twice per week: the experimental group (80) received exercise therapy and a specific 3 hour pain education session with the active control group (74) only receiving exercise therapy. There were no differences in pain related or demographic characteristics between groups at baseline. Both groups had a significant reduction in pain perception after 12 exercise therapy sessions (P<0.05). After a follow up period of 12 months the experimental group sustained the same level of pain reduction (P<0.05). The control group maintained only some the acquired reduction in pain perception. In the experimental group an increased participation in physical activity was also found 12 months after the intervention. Exercise therapy significantly reduces the perception of pain in chronic pain patients after 12 therapy sessions, but the combination of pain education and exercise therapy better maintain these effects after a year. Key Words: chronic pain, exercise, pain education.

[Truncated abstract] Exercise is generally recommended for individuals with type 1 diabetes mellitus since it is associated with numerous physiological and psychological benefits. However, participation in exercise can also increase the risk of experiencing severe hypoglycaemia both during exercise and recovery. Unfortunately, existing guidelines to minimise the risk of exercise-induced hypoglycaemia are often general and fail to take into account that different precautions are required for exercise of varying type, duration and intensity. Specifically, there are no evidence-based guidelines for safe participation in intermittent high-intensity exercise (IHE), which characterises the activity patterns of most team and field sports, manual labour occupations and spontaneous play in children. This is because the response of blood glucose levels to this type of exercise is not known. Consequently, the purpose of this thesis was to investigate the glucoregulatory responses to IHE that replicates the high-intensity work-to-recovery ratios observed in intermittent sports in individuals with type 1 diabetes, in order to assess the associated risk of hypoglycaemia. The first study of this thesis examined the effect of the repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise that characterise IHE compared to remaining inactive, on blood glucose and glucoregulatory hormone levels in individuals with type 1 diabetes. Eight healthy individuals with type 1 diabetes were tested on two separate occasions during which either a 20 minute rest (CON) or an IHE protocol designed to simulate the activity patterns of team sports was performed (repeated 4 second sprints every 2 minutes). ... During the second hour of recovery, Ra and Rd returned to baseline following MOD, but remained elevated after IHE. These changes in Ra and Rd were consistent with a lower glucose infusion rate (GIR) during early recovery from IHE and a higher GIR after 2 hours of recovery compared to MOD. In conclusion, the repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise associated with IHE stimulate a more rapid and greater increment in Ra during exercise and attenuate glucose Rd during early recovery. These findings assist in explaining, in part, the previous observation that the risk of hypoglycaemia might be lower during IHE and early recovery compared to MOD. Overall, the findings of this thesis have implications for current recommendations aimed at managing blood glucose levels during and after exercise to avoid hypoglycaemia.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1993.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1993.

Previous studies of the effect of exercise therapy on scoliosis have demonstrated progression of spinal curves despite vigorous exercise regimens. This study presents evidence to the contrary. Ten children with functional scoliosis and attendant upper thoracic asymmetries were analyzed both before and after a specific exercise therapy programme, in order to determine the effect of the therapy on spinal functionality and the scoliotic curve. The effect of this intensive treatment, in which the subjects underwent a five-month exercise training programme with a total of 60 one-hour sessions, was investigated in a controlled clinical trial. A subjective and objective appraisal of posterior trunk asymmetry in schoolchildren aged 7-18 is reported. Selected functional and anthropometric measurements were made before and after the treatment, and antero-posterior x-rays were used to indicate changes in the scoliotic curve. New methods are described for quantifying the scoliotic curves in each child. Post-treatment tests showed a significant (p<0.05) decrease in Cobb's angles as well as a significant reduction in all the spinal and thoracic functional asymmetries observed in the study. The findings suggest that selective exercise programmes can contribute to improvement in cases of functional scoliosis. The study sheds new light on problems related to scoliosis and the benefits of exercise rehabilitation. Data on the incidence of scoliosis amongst 1052 black children are also presented and discussed.

The purpose of this study was to examine exercise responses during acute and chronic administration of BB, Beta Blockade. Twenty-eight healthy males performed maximal treadmill exercise tests after 1 day and 9 days of 3 double-blind, randomized conditions: a placebo (Pl), propanolol (Pr) 80 mg bid, and atenolol (At) 100 mg daily. Maximal heart rate (HR), oxygen consumption (VO₂), ventilation (VE), and treadmill time (TT) were significantly reduced by Pr and At after an acute and chronic dose. An acute dose of Pr and At caused a greater decrease in maximal HR compared to chronic administration (143.1 ± 5.0 b min⁻¹ at day 1 vs. 147.7 ± 4.2 b min⁻¹ at day 9). However, the overall exercise response was not effected by the change in HR in either the TR or UT subjects. These data indicate that there is no difference in exercise response to acute and chronic BB in young healthy males. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)