The aim of this study was to determine the pre- and post-plantar force differences of athletes competing in an ultra-endurance event. The study was exploratory and quasi-experimental in nature and utilized a quantitative approach. A Quasi-experimental, one group pretest, posttest design was used. The study involved 84 participants selected by means of convenient sampling from a total of 1552 participants. The equipment used for data collection was the RS Footscan®, stadiometer and a weight scale. Differences between the plantar forces before and after the competition were significant for the sample group, indicating higher forces before the competition (t = -3.62, p = 0.001, d = 0.40). Gender, and novice and expert groupings had no significant effect on the plantar forces (t = 1.43, p = 0.155 and t = 0.21, p = 0.837) respectively. Gender groups had large significant differences between the left and right forefoot (t = 3.90, p = 0.000) and the heel (t = 3.54, p = 0.001), before the competition, but this difference was reduced after the competition from large to moderate significance for the forefoot and the heel (t = 2.84, p = 0.006 and t = 2.99 and p = 0.004) respectively. Lower forces after the ultra-endurance event may indicate compensation due to overuse; with less muscle contraction to control foot roll over for force distribution. Favouring of the right foot for weight bearing changed after the event with smaller differences, which could indicate increase loading of the left feet, which may result in injury. The number of females included in this study was relatively few and therefore the effect of gender in respect of plantar foot force exerted should be interpreted with caution. The novices recorded higher forces in the forefoot, after the competition. Similar results were found in other studies that reported increased pressures under the forefoot after long distance running. The latter findings may suggest that novices have a higher chance for overuse injury.

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Lorsque les joueurs de football réalisent plus d’un match par semaine, la durée de récupération entre deux rencontres successives pourrait être insuffisante, ce qui entraînerait une augmentation du nombre de blessures et/ou une diminution de la performance en match. L’objectif principal de cette thèse était d’identifier les facteurs (environnementaux, intrinsèques, position sur le terrain) susceptibles d’influencer la fatigue et les cinétiques de récupération de joueurs de football professionnels après un match. La présente thèse comprenait quatre études ayant pour objectifs d’analyser l’influence des courses et actions de jeu réalisées au cours d’un match (duel, saut, frappe/centre, tacle, changement de direction) ainsi que la surface de jeu (herbe naturelle contre surface synthétique) sur les cinétiques de récupération de marqueurs de performance physique, cognitive, subjectifs et biochimiques. Nos résultats ont montré que les courses réalisées au cours d’un match de football ne sont pas la cause principale de la fatigue générée par le match. Cette fatigue est également fonction des actions de jeu (duel, saut, frappe et changement de direction) réalisées au cours du match. La fatigue générée par le match est fonction de la position occupée sur le terrain (gardiens de but contre joueurs de champ). La surface de jeu n’influence pas les cinétiques de récupération de joueurs habitués à la surface synthétique. Ces résultats devraient permettre d’optimiser dans le futur les stratégies de récupération réalisées après le match. / During periods when the schedule is particularly congested (i.e. two matches per week over several weeks), the recovery time allowed between two successive matches may be insufficient. As a result, players may experience underperformance and/or injury. The overall aim of the present thesis was to identify underlying factors (environmental and intrinsic factors, playing position) that contribute to fatigue and recovery time of professional soccer players after a match. Four experimental studies were conducted to investigate the influence of soccer running activity profile, playing actions performed during a match (i.e. contact, jump, shot/long pass, tackle, change of direction) and playing surface (natural grass versus artificial turf) on the recovery kinetics of physical performance, cognitive performance, subjective ratings and biochemical parameters. Results showed that soccer running performance does not appear to be the main cause for post soccer match-induced fatigue. Post-match fatigue and recovery time depend on playing actions performed during the match (contact, jump, shot/long pass and change of direction). Post-match fatigue depends on playing position (goalkeepers versus outfield players). Playing surface does not impact recovery kinetics among regular artificial turf players. Present results may promote the prescription of more efficient and individualized recovery practices after soccer match.

M.Sc.(Med.), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, 2009 / Introduction Foot involvement is common in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Foot pain, instability and deformity affect ambulation and impacts on health-related quality of life. The aim of this study was to determine the nature, extent and functional impact of rheumatoid foot problems in established RA. Patients and Methods One hundred RA patients were studied. Functional status was evaluated using the modified Health Assessment Questionnaire (mHAQ) and Foot Health Status Questionnaire (FHSQ). Foot deformity and footwear suitability was assessed using the Foot Problems Survey (FP Survey) and Footwear Suitability Scale (FWS Scale). Results In this predominantly female group of 95%, with a mean (± SD) disease duration of 12.2 (7.9) and moderate functional disability [mHAQ: 1.3 (0.6)], the FP Survey showed all patients had one or more foot deformity. Foot function was impaired with a mean (± SD) FHSQ score of 41.3 (12.4) and the FWS Scale showed that 93% wore unsuitable footwear. A strong correlation was observed of the global FHSQ (r=-0.5489, p<0.0001), its pain domain (r=-0.472, p<0.0001) and foot function domain (r=-0.599, p<0.0001), with the global mHAQ score. Despite the high frequency of foot problems observed only 27% had visited a podiatrist. Conclusion In conclusion foot problems and foot function disability is common in Black South African patients with established RA. Furthermore the strong correlation between mHAQ and FHSQ showed that foot functional disability was a major driver of overall functional disability in RA.

Nous avons effectué une étude bibliographique intitulée “The diabetic foot microbiota: A review”. Cette revue a permis une réactualisation des données connues sur le microbiote du pied diabétique. Nous avons discuté le rôle des bactéries dans la pathogénèse de l’ulcère du pied diabétique et la différenciation entre l’infection et la colonisation bactérienne au niveau de la plaie ainsi que la superposition de l’approche moléculaire et la culture. Nous avons étudié le microbiote du pied diabétique infecté par culturomic. Il s’agit de varier les conditions de culture, puis identifier les colonies par MALDI-TOF ou par amplification et séquençage ARNr 16S. Cette technique s’est montrée efficace dans l’élargissement de l’éventail des bactéries identifiées. 53 espèces bactériennes différentes ont été identifiées à partir des échantillons de 43 patients. L’hétérogénéité et la richesse des plaies se sont montrées importantes. Staphylococcus aureus était l’espèce dominante. Nous nous sommes servis de tests statistiques pour évaluer l’influence que les facteurs cliniques chez les patients pourraient avoir sur la composition de cette flore et l’évolution de la plaie. On s’est orienté vers des souches spéciales « ExPEC » isolées des pieds diabétiques reconnues par leur virulence et impliquées dans des infections extra intestinales sévères. Nous avons disposé d’une collection de souches d’E Coli isolées des pieds diabétiques afin de mener une étude génétique. Nous sommes parvenus à amplifier les gènes de virulence, classer les souches par phylogroupes et les assembler dans des clones. En plus, nous avons réalisé un typage des souches ainsi qu’une exploitation des gènes de résistance. / We conducted a bibliographic study entitled "The Diabetic Foot Microbiota: a review". This review has offered an update of the data concerning the diabetic foot microbiota. We discussed the role of bacteria in the pathogenesis of diabetic foot ulcer, the differentiation between infection and bacterial colonization of the wound and the importance of superposing culture and molecular Tools.We studied the diabetic foot microbiota using the culturomics. It consists in varying the culture conditions and then to identify the colonies by MALDI-TOF or 16s rRNA amplification and sequencing. We decided to practice this technique on the diabetic foot microbiota because it has proven to be effective in broadening the range of identified bacteria. 53 different bacterial species were identified from the samples of 43 patients. The heterogeneity and richness of the wounds were elevated. Staphylococcus aureus was the dominant species. We used statistical tests to evaluate the influence that clinical factors in patients might have on the composition of this flora and the evolution of the wound. We targeted special strains « ExPEC »isolated from diabetic feet known to their virulance and involved in severe extra intestinal infections. We disposed of a collection of E Coli strains isolated from diabetic wounds to conduct a genetic study. We have managed to amplify the virulence genes, classify the strains by phylogroupes and assemble them in clones. In addition, we performed a strain typing as well as an exploitation of the resistance genes.

The majority of North Americans suffer from foot problems at some point in their lives. These foot problems can be divided into three domains ranging from mismatch on healthy feet, to small injuries and deformities and extreme sensitivity and deformities. A solution to these problems is the development of corrective shoes. The design of corrective shoes involves three steps: first, the measurement or digitization of the foot to create a model; second, the manipulation of the model and last creation; third, constructing the shoe with the last. This work focuses on developing a foot digitization system or scanner for each of the three problem domains. A good digitization paves the way for development of foot manipulation algorithms and last manufacturing techniques that can be applied to develop well fitting comfortable shoes. Three scanning methods were investigated in this work. The first was designed for scanning near normal feet and automatically building a 3D approximation of the plantar surface of the foot. This digitizer was successfully built and demonstrated. The second scanner was designed to scan the entire 3D surface of the foot. This scanner was built and used to extract data for building complete 3D models of the foot. The last scanner was designed to measure and modify the pressure distribution of the loaded foot on a controllable surface. This scanner is more capable in creating an optimal corrective shoe, but is more expensive. A pin matrix design was selected and subsystem prototypes were successfully produced and tested. The first two developed designs provide low cost solutions for modeling feet, for the purposes of corrective shoe and insole creation. The third design explores a method of measuring foot pressure and distributing it via control of a 3D surface upon which the foot is supported.

Thèse--University of Paris. / "Ouvrages consultés": p. [261]-266.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2009. / Principal faculty advisor: James G. Richards, College of Health Sciences. Includes bibliographical references.