submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2015. / Background Rugby union is one of South Africa’s most popular sports; it requires high levels of skill and fitness and is played at a high intensity and speed which allows for a greater risk of injury. The high risk of injury is said to be due to the nature of the physicality of rugby. It is because of this high risk of injury that several adaptations of rugby have since developed which rely more on speed and agility than physicality. These adaptations include tens or ten-a-side rugby, sevens or seven-a-side rugby and finally touch rugby, which is played with six players a-side. Each adaptation has its own set of rules and is played differently to the traditional rugby union or fifteen-a-side rugby. Hence, in these adaptations the physicality is said to decrease with a resultant increase in demand for speed and agility. The reduction of physicality and increase in the need for speed and agility would imply that the nature of injuries sustained will be different to those sustained in traditional rugby union. Objectives To develop a profile of injuries that describe the type, anatomical location and mechanism of injuries sustained in tens, sevens and touch rugby; to compare the injuries sustained between the three groups; and, to analyse management strategies utilised by chiropractic students at the 2014 Durban ‘Rugby Rush Tournament’. Additionally this study aimed to provide recommendations to the injury reporting form utilised. Method This study was a retrospective, quantitative, descriptive study based on the Chiropractic Student Sports Association’s report form in order to produce a retrospective cohort analysis of injury and treatment profiles. Participants who made use of the chiropractic treatment facility were required to complete the informed consent section of the injury reporting form. The chiropractic intern was required to complete the remainder of the form pertaining to the participant, complaint and treatment information. This study was limited to event participants to allow for subgroup analysis. The forms were then captured and analysed. Results The data collected consisted of a total of 345 individual patient forms which indicated 626 visits for a total of 733 complaints. The average participant age was 24 ± 5.58. The study found muscle strains (41.5%), SI Syndrome (17.6%) and Joint sprains (15.0%) to be the most frequent diagnoses. A history or previous injury or trauma was reported in 18.7% and 7.40% respectively. Acute injuries accounted for 64.3% and 35.7% were recorded as chronic in nature. The most frequent mechanism of injury was that of overuse (81.9%) and trauma accounted for 17.2% of injuries. The lumbar region (26.1%), thigh (20.7%) and shin/calf (15.6%) were the most commonly reported regions of complaint. Manipulation (58.8%), massage (32.0%) and stretch PNF (27.9%) were the most frequently used treatment protocols. Strapping was utilised in 21.1% of injuries of which 5.20% was applied to the muscle and 13.6% was applied to the joint. No comparison was made using the sevens subgroup as there were insufficient records, thus only tens and touch players were compared. A borderline non-significant difference (p = 0.057) was noted between the type of player and the history of previous trauma. Tens players were more likely to have a history of trauma compared to touch players. A significant difference (p = 0.001) was found between the type of athlete and mechanism of injury. Overuse was more common in touch players whereas trauma was more common in tens players. Due to statistical inconsistencies no significance tests were applicable to compare the type of player and region of complaint. Recommendations were proposed in order to avoid this in future research. Conclusion This study provides a base of knowledge regarding the injuries that were presented to the chiropractic treatment facility at the 2014 Durban ‘Rugby Rush Tournament’ and the management strategies utilised by the chiropractic interns at the event. This research provides insight into injury profiling of tens, sevens and touch rugby players. There were several recommendations proposed for future researchers in order to expand on this field of knowledge.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:07:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ThercioHCC_TESE.pdf: 3355689 bytes, checksum: 0848bf4db8c96f8922893ef41d7b36f0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-03-29 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / This work reports the influence of the poly (ethylene terephthalate) textile and films surface modification by plasmas of O2 and mixtures (N2 + O2), on their physical and chemical properties. The plasma surface polymeric modification has been used for many researchs, because it does not affect the environment with toxic agents, the alterations remains only at nanometric layers and this technique shows expressive results. Then, due to its good acceptance, the treatment was carried out in a vacuum chamber. Some parameters remained constant during all treatment, such as: Voltage 470 V; Pressure 1,250 Mbar; Current: 0, 10 A and gas flow: 10 cm3/min, using oxygen plasma alternating the treatment time 10 to 60 min with an increase of 10 min to each subsequent treatment. Also, the samples were treated with a gas mixture (nitrogen + oxygen) which was varied only the gas composition from 0 to 100% leaving the treatment time remaining constant to all treatment (10 min). The plasma treatment was characterized in-situ with Optics Emission Spectroscopy (OES), and the samples was characterized by contact angle, surface tension, Through Capillary tests, Raman spectroscopy, Infrared attenuated total reflection (IR-ATR) and atomic force microscopy, scanning electronic Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The results showed that oxygen treated fabrics presented high wettability, due to the hydrophilic groups incorporation onto the surface formed through spputering of carbon atoms. For the nitrogen atmosphere, there is the a film deposition of amine groups. Treatment with small oxygen concentration in the mixture with nitrogen has a higher spputered species of the samples / Neste trabalho, investigou-se a influ?ncia do tratamento superficial a plasma utilizando como gases de trabalho o oxig?nio e uma mistura de nitrog?nio + oxig?nio, sobre as propriedades f?sicas e qu?micas de tecidose filmes de Poli?ster. A modifica??o superficial de superf?cies polim?ricas por plasma tem sido bastante utilizada, pois a mesma n?o apresenta agentes nocivos ao ambiente, ?s altera??es promovidas no material s?o de escala nanom?tricas, e comprovadamente ? a t?cnica que tem apresentado resultados mais expressivos. Ent?o, tendo em vista a boa aceitabilidade do uso do plasma em materiais polim?ricos, O tratamento foi realizado em uma c?mara contendo os gases de trabalho sob baixa press?o (~ 1 mbar) mantendo-se constante durante todo ensaio alguns par?metros do plasma, tais como, voltagem: 470 V; press?o: 1,250 mbar; corrente: 0,10 A e fluxo de g?s: 10 cm3/min, usando plasma com atmosfera gasosa de oxig?nio variando-se o tempo de tratamento de 10 - 60 min com incremento de 10 min a cada tratamento subseq?ente, e tamb?m usou-se a atmosfera gasosa composta por uma mistura de nitrog?nio e oxig?nio, variando a concentra??o gasosa dos mesmos (de 0 100%), para um tempo de tratamento de 10 min. O tratamento por plasma foi caracterizado in-situ com o auxilio da Espectroscopia de Emiss?o ?tica,e as amostras foram caracterizadas por medidas de ?ngulo de contato, tens?o superficial, arraste capilar, espectroscopia Raman, Espectroscopia de infravermelho de reflex?o total atenuada (IR-ATR), e microscopia de for?a at?mica (AFM), Microscopia Eletr?nica de Varredura (MEV) e por espectroscopia de fotoel?trons excitados por raios-X (XPS). Os resultados mostraram que tecidos tratados com atmosfera de oxig?nio apresentaram elevada molhabilidade, devido a incorpora??o de grupos hidrof?licos na superf?cie formados com o arrancamento de ?tomos de carbono. Para a atmosfera de nitrog?nio, tem-se a deposi??o de um filme com base em em grupos aminas. Tratamentos com a concentra??o pequena de Oxig?nio numa mistura com Nitrog?nio tem-se maior arrancamento de esp?cies das amostras

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:07:19Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 PedroLSF_DISSERT.pdf: 5571248 bytes, checksum: d237019829d37099df0ac47168668556 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-07-21 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / Composite laminates with plies in different directions finely dispersed are classified as homogenized. The expected benefits of homogenization include increased mechanical strength, toughness and resistance to delamination. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of stacking sequence on the tensile strength of laminates. Composite plates were fabricated using unidirectional layers of carbon/epoxy prepreg with configurations [903/303/-303]S and [90/30/-30]3S. Specimens were subjected to tensile and open hole tension (OHT) tests. According to the experimental results, the mean values of strength for the homogenized laminates [90/30/-30]3S were 140% and 120% greater for tensile and OHT tests, respectively, as compared to laminates with configuration [903/303/-303]S. The increase in tensile strength for more homogenized laminates was associated with the increment in interlaminar interfaces, which requires more energy to produce delamination, and the more complicated crack propagation through plies with different orientations. OHT strength was not affected by the presence of the hole due to the predominance of the interlaminar shear stress in relation to the stress concentration produced by the hole / Laminados formados por l?minas com diferentes orienta??es, finamente dispersas, s?o classificados como homogeneizados. Os benef?cios esperados da homogeneiza??o incluem aumento de resist?ncia mec?nica, da tenacidade e da resist?ncia ? delamina??o. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito da sequ?ncia de empilhamento na resist?ncia ? tra??o de laminados quase-isotr?picos. Placas de comp?sitos foram fabricadas com l?minas unidirecionais de ep?xi/carbono com configura??es [903/303/-303]S e [90/30/-30]3S. Corpos de prova foram submetidos a ensaios de tra??o e de open hole tension (OHT). De acordo com os resultados experimentais, os valores m?dios de resist?ncia para os laminados mais homogeneizados [90/30/-30]3S foram incrementados em 140% e 120% nos ensaios de resist?ncia ? tra??o e OHT, respectivamente, em rela??o aos laminados com configura??o [903/303/-303]S. O aumento de resist?ncia ? tra??o para laminados mais homogeneizados foi relacionado com o maior n?mero de interfaces interlaminares, que aumenta a quantidade de energia necess?ria para produzir delamina??o, e a maior dificuldade de propaga??o de trincas atrav?s de l?minas com orienta??es diferentes. A resist?ncia medida nos ensaios de OHT n?o foi afetada pela presen?a do furo devido ? predomin?ncia da influ?ncia da tens?o de cisalhamento interlaminar em rela??o ao efeito de concentra??o de tens?o provocado pelo furo

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:56:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SuelioFC_DISSERT.pdf: 1266723 bytes, checksum: 8001a23164a7a48663a60001950fc3e0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-02-01 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / The stability of synchronous generators connected to power grid has been the object of study and research for years. The interest in this matter is justified by the fact that much of the electricity produced worldwide is obtained with the use of synchronous generators. In this respect, studies have been proposed using conventional and unconventional control techniques such as fuzzy logic, neural networks, and adaptive controllers to increase the stabilitymargin of the systemduring sudden failures and transient disturbances. Thismaster thesis presents a robust unconventional control strategy for maintaining the stability of power systems and regulation of output voltage of synchronous generators connected to the grid. The proposed control strategy comprises the integration of a sliding surface with a linear controller. This control structure is designed to prevent the power system losing synchronism after a sudden failure and regulation of the terminal voltage of the generator after the fault. The feasibility of the proposed control strategy was experimentally tested in a salient pole synchronous generator of 5 kVA in a laboratory structure / A estabilidade de geradores s?ncronos conectados a rede el?trica tem sido objeto de estudo e investiga??es durante anos. O interesse por este assunto ? justificado pelo fato de grande parte da energia el?trica produzida no mundo ser obtida com a utiliza??o de geradores s?ncronos. Nesse aspecto, muitos trabalhos t?m sido propostos utilizando t?cnicas de controle convencional e n?o convencional como l?gica fuzzy, redes neurais e controladores adaptativos visando aumentar a margem de estabilidade do sistema quando ele est? sujeito a falhas s?bitas e dist?rbios transit?rios. Este trabalho apresenta uma estrat?gia de controle robusta n?o-convencional para a manuten??o da estabilidade dos sistemas de pot?ncia e regula??o da tens?o de sa?da de geradores s?ncronos conectados ? rede el?trica. A estrat?gia de controle utilizada ? composta pela integra??o de uma superf?cie deslizante com um controlador linear. Esta estrutura de controle contribui para a preven??o dos sistemas de pot?ncia de perder o sincronismo ap?s uma falha s?bita e regula??o da tens?o terminal do gerador ap?s a falta. A viabilidade da estrat?gia de controle proposta foi testada experimentalmente em um gerador s?ncrono de p?los salientes de 5 kVA em uma estrutura de laborat?rio

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:56:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CecilioMSN_DISSERT.pdf: 1132732 bytes, checksum: 95ce32ef2cdf325116d25b76e2b1858a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-07-05 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / The power system stabilizers are used to suppress low-frequency electromechanical oscillations and improve the synchronous generator stability limits. This master thesis proposes a wavelet-based power system stabilizer, composed of a new methodology for extraction and compensation of electromechanical oscillations in electrical power systems based on the scaling coefficient energy of the maximal overlap discrete wavelet transform in order to reduce the effects of delay and attenuation of conventional power system stabilizers. Moreover, the wavelet coefficient energy is used for electric oscillation detection and triggering the power system stabilizer only in fault situations. The performance of the proposed power system stabilizer was assessed with experimental results and comparison with the conventional power system stabilizer. Furthermore, the effects of the mother wavelet were also evaluated in this work / Os estabilizadores de sistemas de pot?ncia s?o empregados para suprimir oscila??es eletromec?nicas, de baixa frequ?ncia, e estender os limites de estabilidade de geradores s?ncronos. Prop?e-se nesta disserta??o de mestrado um estabilizador de sistema de pot?ncia baseado nas wavelets, composta por uma novametodologia para extra??o e compensa??o de oscila??es eletromec?nicas em sistemas el?tricos de pot?ncia baseada nas energias dos coeficientes de aproxima??o da transformada wavelet discreta redundante, com o objetivo de reduzir os efeitos de atraso e atenua??es dos estabilizadores de sistemas de pot?ncia convencionais. Por outro lado, as energias dos coeficientes wavelet s?o utilizadas para detec??o das oscila??es el?tricas e habilita??o do estabilizador de sistema de pot?ncia proposto apenas nas situa??es de falta. A efic?cia do desempenho do estabilizador de sistema de pot?ncia proposto foi comprovada por meio de resultados experimentais, cujo desempenho foi comparado com o desempenho do estabilizador de sistema de pot?ncia convencional. Al?m disso, os efeitos das wavelets m?es tamb?m foram avaliados

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:57:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DucianeOF.pdf: 2916882 bytes, checksum: 4dd79fd7f32c69ce44eb80c291049409 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-08-24 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / The 100% cotton fabric (CO)* treated with plasma of methane CH4 has direct application in all areas that needs of aqueous solutions repellent material like coatings and uniforms applied biomedical, aeronautics, and automobile between others. 100% cotton fabric (CO) samples were treated by plasma with two differents atmosphere: Methane gas (CH4), treatment time was varied in 10 in 10 min. until 60 min., and mixture methane/argon (CH4/Ar), it was varied the proportion 1:9, 2:8, 3:7, 4:6, 5:5, 6:4, 7:3, 8:2 e 9:1, with treatment time of 30 minutes. In both, the fluxe was 5 sccm (second cubic centimeter), pressure 6 mbar, voltage 490 V and current 0,15A. The objective of work was measure the superficial tension of 100% CO then it treated with plasma, using contact angle measures of water and glycerol with the surface. The samples were tested after treatment, with 8 and 12 months to verify the superficial modification effects. It was verified an increase of hydrophobility with the Sessile drop values varied between 116,69? to 137,85? and it carried on after 12 months. The no treated samples shows contact angle equal 0?. OES analysis and Raman spectroscopy were accomplished. In the SEM analysis was verified oligomers. The plasma treatment is correct environmental, It turning greater than conventional treatments / O tecido 100% Algod?o (CO)* tratado com plasma de metano (CH4) tem aplica??o direta em todas as ?reas que necessitam de um material com maior repel?ncia a solu??es aquosas, como revestimentos e uniformes aplicados a ?rea biom?dica, aeron?utica, automobil?stica, entre outras. Amostras de tecido 100% CO foram tratadas com plasma utilizando duas atmosferas diferentes: g?s CH4, com tempos que variaram de 10 em 10 min. at? 60 min., e uma mistura de metano/arg?nio (CH4/Ar), em propor??es 1:9, 2:8, 3:7, 4:6, 5:5, 6:4, 7:3, 8:2 e 9:1, durante 30 min. O fluxo utilizado nos dois processos foi de 5 cm3/s (cent?metro c?bicos por segundo), a uma press?o de 6 mbar , voltagem de 490 V e corrente de 0,15 A. O objetivo do trabalho foi medir a varia??o da tens?o superficial do tecido 100% CO ap?s tratado com plasma; Utilizando medidas de ?ngulo de contato da ?gua e do glicerol com a superf?cie. As amostras foram testadas imediatamente ap?s o tratamento, com 8 e 12 meses, a fim de verificar a dura??o do efeito desta modifica??o superficial. Verificou-se um aumento da hidrofobicidade atrav?s dos valores do teste da gota s?ssil que variaram entre 116,69? a 137,85? e se mantiveram ap?s 12 meses; As amostras n?o tratadas apresentam ?ngulo de contato igual a 0?. An?lises de espectroscopia de emiss?o ?tica (EEO) e espectroscopia Raman (ER) foram realizadas, bem como, an?lise de microscopia eletr?nica de varredura (MEV) a qual confirmou presen?a de olig?meros. O processo a plasma ? ambientalmente correto e se torna superior em compara??o aos tratamentos convencionais

Submitted by Automa??o e Estat?stica (sst@bczm.ufrn.br) on 2017-06-02T22:25:24Z No. of bitstreams: 1 AndrieleNascimentoDeSouza_DISSERT.pdf: 14510659 bytes, checksum: b589d39cc71e5725449a5974847ba202 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Arlan Eloi Leite Silva (eloihistoriador@yahoo.com.br) on 2017-06-08T21:37:57Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 AndrieleNascimentoDeSouza_DISSERT.pdf: 14510659 bytes, checksum: b589d39cc71e5725449a5974847ba202 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-08T21:37:57Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 AndrieleNascimentoDeSouza_DISSERT.pdf: 14510659 bytes, checksum: b589d39cc71e5725449a5974847ba202 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-03-30 / A Barragem Eng. Armando Ribeiro Gon?alves, mais conhecida como Barragem de A?u, ? uma obra geot?cnica de expressiva notoriedade e import?ncia no Rio Grande do Norte e no Nordeste. Al?m do seu porte ? ? a maior barragem do RN ? e import?ncia, ganhou destaque na literatura nacional e internacional pelo rompimento do talude de montante no final do per?odo construtivo. A partir da an?lise dos dados de instrumenta??o dispon?veis no meio acad?mico, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo analisar o comportamento da obra nas etapas de constru??o do maci?o, primeiro enchimento e opera??o do reservat?rio. Em cada etapa, foi analisado: o comportamento tens?o-deforma??o; a varia??o de poro-press?es; e a estabilidade de taludes. As an?lises foram feitas com os softwares Sigma/W, Seep/W e Slope/W, pertencentes ao pacote Geo-Studio, da empresa Geo-Slope. Os resultados das modelagens foram comparados aos dados da instrumenta??o, dispon?veis em Rocha (2003). Na an?lise comparativa dos deslocamentos verticais, a maior diferen?a entre os resultados da modelagem e os dados da instrumenta??o foi de 8,9 cm, no extens?metro T7, no final do primeiro enchimento. Na an?lise da estabilidade, o fator de seguran?a mais baixo foi de 1,3, fornecido pelo m?todo dos elementos finitos, para o talude de montante, na fase de opera??o do reservat?rio. Entretanto, a m?dia dos fatores de seguran?a obtidos pelos m?todos baseados no equil?brio-limite nesta etapa foi de 2,4. Para o talude de jusante, esse fator foi de 1,6 em todas as etapas. Esses resultados comprovam a condi??o est?vel da barragem de A?u. Na an?lise de poropress?es, os piez?metros pneum?ticos apresentaram maiores diverg?ncias, entre modelagem e instrumenta??o, do que os de tubo aberto. A diferen?a mais expressiva foi de 46% (23 kPa), no piez?metro PZP1, no primeiro enchimento do reservat?rio. Entretanto, considerando as diferen?as obtidas por outros autores que tamb?m estudaram o fluxo nesta barragem, conclui-se que os resultados da an?lise s?o satisfat?rios e que os par?metros adotados s?o adequados para caracterizar os solos modelados. / The A?u Dam is an important geotechnical built in Rio Grande do Norte and in Northeast Brazilian, especially because of its size and complexity. In addition to its size and importance, it has gained prominence in the national and international literature because of the collapse in upstream slope in the end of construction period. This paper aimed to analyze its behavior in stages of dam construction, first filling and operation of the reservoir. In each step, were analyzed: the stress-strain behavior, the flow and the pore-pressure variation, and the slope stability. These analyses were performed with the software Sigma/W, Seep/W and Slope/W, which are components in a suite of geotechnical products called GeoStudio, produced by Geo-Slope International Ltd. The results were compared with the instrumentation dates available in Rocha (2003). In the comparative analysis of vertical displacements, the largest difference between modeling results and instrumentation data was 8.9 cm, in the T7 extensometer, at the end of the first filling. In the stability analysis, the lowest safety factor was 1.3 for the upstream slope in the reservoir operation phase, but the media of the safety factors obtained by the methods based on limit equilibrium was 2.4. For a downstream slope, this factor was equal to 1.6 in all stages. These results confirm the dam stable condition. In pore-pressure analysis, the pneumatic piezometers presented greater divergences between modeling and instrumentation than those of the Casagrande type. The most significant difference was 46% (23 kPa), in the PZP1 piezometer, at the first filling of the reservoir. However, considering the differences obtained by other authors who also studied the water flow in this dam, we conclude that the results of the present analysis are satisfactory and that the adopted parameters are adequate to characterize the soils modeled.

Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico - CNPq / Introduction: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic, degenerative and progressive disorder, responsible for developing disabling motor and non-motor symptoms. It occurs due to a loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, locus coeruleus and striatum and the presence of extranigrais dysfunction. Pain is one of the most frequent non-motor features. Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) as well as therapeutic exercise may help the treatment of PD as both of them activate central pathways that reduce pain by releasing opioids. Aims: To evaluate the effect of TENS associated with physical exercise in the intensity of pain, temporal summation, skin sensitivity, fatigue, gait speed, sitting and standing speed, dynamic balance and psycho-emotional factors. Method: This is a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial, using a crossover design. PD patients were randomly distributed into to groups: Active TENS or Placebo TENS, both associated with 20 minutes of exercise, for TENS application in the lumbar and thoracic spine. Study groups went through the following procedures: evaluation (before and after each application session TENS; before the start and after completion of each group), physical therapy intervention of 20 sessions (with 10 sessions in each group). Instruments or procedures used in the assessment and reassessment were: numerical scale of 11 points (intensity of pain and fatigue), Test Timed Up and Go (functionality of legs in displacement), accelerometry (movement speed during the act of sitting and up), figure 8 test (dynamic balance), esthesiometer (skin sensitivity), pendulum fleximeter (range of motion), temporal summation (central sensitization), Pain Catastrophizing Scale (negative expectation regarding pain), Beck Depression Inventory (depression). Results: Comparing pre- and post-treatment, there was improvement in: pain intensity in the active group (p = 0.0068), running speed in the active group (p <0.0001) skin sensitivity on the right (p = 0.0022) and left (p = 0.0410) points on the chest of the active group, dynamic balance (p = 0.0085) in the active group, temporal summation (p = 0.0044) trunk muscle flexibility in flexion movements (p = 0.0103) extension (P = 0.0104) right (p = 0.0001) and left rotation (p = 0.0001) in the active group and flexion ( p = 0.0001) extension (P = 0.0349), right slope (p = 0.0042) and left rotation (p = 0.0001) in the placebo group. Conclusion: According to the results obtained in our study, the active TENS associated with physical exercises showed effectiveness in the treatment of pain, reduced temporal summation, skin sensitivity, fatigue, gait speed, muscle flexibility and dynamic balance of individuals with PD. There was no effect of analgesic tolerance in these individuals. / Introdução: A Doença de Parkinson (DP) é uma desordem crônica e degenerativa, de caráter progressivo, responsável pelo desenvolvimento de sintomas incapacitantes motores e não motores sendo a dor uma das características não motoras mais frequentes. A Estimulação Elétrica Nervosa Transcutânea (TENS), bem como exercícios terapêuticos, podem auxiliar no tratamento da DP, pois ativam vias centrais que reduzem a dor através da liberação de opióides. Objetivos: Avaliar o efeito da TENS associada ao exercício físico na intensidade de dor, somação temporal, sensibilidade cutânea, fadiga, velocidade de marcha, velocidade de movimento, equilíbrio dinâmico e fatores psicoemocionais. Método: Trata-se de um ensaio clínico com distribuição aleatória, controlado por placebo, duplamente encoberto, do tipo crossover. Vinte e seis pacientes com DP foram distribuídos, aleatoriamente, nos tratamentos com ordem TENS Ativa-Placebo ou TENS Placebo-Ativa, ambos associados a exercícios físicos de 20 minutos, para aplicação da TENS (frequência de 100 Hz, pulso de 100 μs, intensidade no limiar motor) nas regiões lombar e torácica paravertebrais. Os grupos de estudos passaram pelos seguintes procedimentos: avaliação (antes e após cada sessão de aplicação da TENS; antes do início e após finalização de cada grupo), intervenção fisioterapêutica de 20 sessões (sendo 10 sessões em cada grupo, com washout de sete dias). Os instrumentos ou procedimentos utilizados nos processos de avaliação e reavaliação foram: escala numérica de 11 pontos (intensidade de dor e fadiga), teste Timed Up and Go (tempo de deslocamento), acelerometria (velocidade de movimento durante o ato de sentar e levantar), teste da figura 8 (equilíbrio dinâmico), estesiometria (sensibilidade cutânea), fleximetria pendular (amplitude de movimento), somação temporal (sensibilização central), escala de catastrofização da dor (expectativa negativa em relação à dor), inventário de depressão de Beck (depressão). Resultados: Comparando o pré e pós-tratamento, foi observada melhora no (a): intensidade de dor do grupo ativo (p=0,0068), velocidade de marcha no grupo ativo (p<0,0001), sensibilidade cutânea nos pontos direito (p=0,0022) e esquerdo (p=0,0410) da região torácica do grupo ativo, equilíbrio dinâmico (p=0,0085) do grupo ativo, somação temporal (p=0,0044), flexibilidade muscular de tronco nos movimentos de flexão (p=0,0103), extensão (p=0,0104), rotação direita (p=0,0001) e esquerda (p=0,0001) no grupo ativo e flexão (p=0,0001), extensão (p=0,0349), inclinação direita (p=0,0042) e rotação esquerda (p=0,0001) no grupo placebo. Conclusão: TENS ativa associada a exercícios físicos se mostrou efetiva através da redução da intensidade de dor e da somação temporal, sensibilidade cutânea, fadiga, velocidade de marcha, flexibilidade muscular e equilíbrio dinâmico dos indivíduos com DP. Não foi observado efeito de tolerância analgésica nestes indivíduos.

Submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2015. / Background Rugby union is one of South Africa’s most popular sports; it requires high levels of skill and fitness and is played at a high intensity and speed which allows for a greater risk of injury. The high risk of injury is said to be due to the nature of the physicality of rugby. It is because of this high risk of injury that several adaptations of rugby have since developed which rely more on speed and agility than physicality. These adaptations include tens or ten-a-side rugby, sevens or seven-a-side rugby and finally touch rugby, which is played with six players a-side. Each adaptation has its own set of rules and is played differently to the traditional rugby union or fifteen-a-side rugby. Hence, in these adaptations the physicality is said to decrease with a resultant increase in demand for speed and agility. The reduction of physicality and increase in the need for speed and agility would imply that the nature of injuries sustained will be different to those sustained in traditional rugby union. Objectives To develop a profile of injuries that describe the type, anatomical location and mechanism of injuries sustained in tens, sevens and touch rugby; to compare the injuries sustained between the three groups; and, to analyse management strategies utilised by chiropractic students at the 2014 Durban ‘Rugby Rush Tournament’. Additionally this study aimed to provide recommendations to the injury reporting form utilised. Method This study was a retrospective, quantitative, descriptive study based on the Chiropractic Student Sports Association’s report form in order to produce a retrospective cohort analysis of injury and treatment profiles. Participants who made use of the chiropractic treatment facility were required to complete the informed consent section of the injury reporting form. The chiropractic intern was required to complete the remainder of the form pertaining to the participant, complaint and treatment information. This study was limited to event participants to allow for subgroup analysis. The forms were then captured and analysed. Results The data collected consisted of a total of 345 individual patient forms which indicated 626 visits for a total of 733 complaints. The average participant age was 24 ± 5.58. The study found muscle strains (41.5%), SI Syndrome (17.6%) and Joint sprains (15.0%) to be the most frequent diagnoses. A history or previous injury or trauma was reported in 18.7% and 7.40% respectively. Acute injuries accounted for 64.3% and 35.7% were recorded as chronic in nature. The most frequent mechanism of injury was that of overuse (81.9%) and trauma accounted for 17.2% of injuries. The lumbar region (26.1%), thigh (20.7%) and shin/calf (15.6%) were the most commonly reported regions of complaint. Manipulation (58.8%), massage (32.0%) and stretch PNF (27.9%) were the most frequently used treatment protocols. Strapping was utilised in 21.1% of injuries of which 5.20% was applied to the muscle and 13.6% was applied to the joint. No comparison was made using the sevens subgroup as there were insufficient records, thus only tens and touch players were compared. A borderline non-significant difference (p = 0.057) was noted between the type of player and the history of previous trauma. Tens players were more likely to have a history of trauma compared to touch players. A significant difference (p = 0.001) was found between the type of athlete and mechanism of injury. Overuse was more common in touch players whereas trauma was more common in tens players. Due to statistical inconsistencies no significance tests were applicable to compare the type of player and region of complaint. Recommendations were proposed in order to avoid this in future research. Conclusion This study provides a base of knowledge regarding the injuries that were presented to the chiropractic treatment facility at the 2014 Durban ‘Rugby Rush Tournament’ and the management strategies utilised by the chiropractic interns at the event. This research provides insight into injury profiling of tens, sevens and touch rugby players. There were several recommendations proposed for future researchers in order to expand on this field of knowledge. / M