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The rate of hip fracture in Japanese women is approximately 50% lower than that of Caucasian women. Shorter hip axis length (HAL) in Japanese women is one possible explanation underlying the observed ethnic difference in fracture risk. We measured HAL in a community-based sample of Japanese (n=267) and Caucasian (n=199) women, aged 46 years on average, residing in Los Angeles, California. We hypothesized that HAL would be shorter in the Japanese women compared with the Caucasian women, and that this ethnic difference would persist after height adjustment. Unadjusted mean HAL was 101.45 mm in Japanese women and 105.98 mm in Caucasians (p

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effects of two doses of a weighted vest on acute lower-extremity gait kinetics in older adults. Peak ankle, knee, and hip net joint moments were quantified in 56 men and women volunteers (73.8 ± 6.9 years old) enrolled in a 6-month physical activity study. At the initial study visit, participants underwent 6 walking trials (3 with vest, 3 without vest) at their normal pace. During the vest-wearing trials, participants wore a vest loaded with either 0% of body weight (BW) (n = 19), 3% of BW (n = 16), or 5% of BW (n = 21). With acute application of the vests, maximum peak plantarflexion moments increased by 5.7% in the 5% BW group compared to the 0% BW group, p < 0.01. Compared to the 0% vest-weight group, knee extension moments increased by 13.8% when 5% BW was applied, p < 0.01; a marginally significant treatment effect was evident in the 3% BW group, p = 0.04. Despite these acute alterations, knee strength and physical performance did not improve when subjects wore the vests 2 hours a day, 4 days a week for 27 weeks, without additional exercise prescription. These findings suggest that: (a) the acute changes in vest-mediated lower-extremity kinetics are not systemic but joint specific and load dependent, and (b) weighted vest prescription should be greater than 5% BW without prescribed exercise, or should include prescribed exercises, to invoke long-term strength and physical performance gains in older adults.

This study characterizes the linear relations among knee strength, work capacity, and lower- and higher-intensity measures of functional performance in ambulatory, high-functioning older adults.Sixty-two seniors (average age = 73.4 +/- 7.3 yr) participated in the study. Isokinetic measures included the peak flexion/extension torque produced during five continuous repetitions and the total flexion/extension work performed during 20 repetitions (60 degrees x s(-1)). Functional measures included lower-intensity tests (timed 8-foot and 50-foot walking tests at the participants' "normal" pace, and a standing reach task) and higher-intensity tests (a timed 50-foot "brisk" walk, timed chair stands, and a timed stair climb).Isokinetic strength and work capacity measures explained between 41% and 54% of the variance in the higher-intensity functional models and only between 31% and 33% of the variance in the lower-intensity models. The strength of the associations, approximated by the beta coefficients of the strength and work terms, was also greater for the higher-intensity functional tasks.Further research is warranted to determine whether exercises that increase knee strength and work capacity, improve brisk walking, stair climbing, and chair standing capabilities in older adults.

We feel that teachers can play a crucial role in developing the independent learning abilities of their students. However, this may involve considerable changes in teaching practice, so support for teachers facilitating independent learning is essential. This chapter is the story of how we have explored our understanding of how teachers develop their ability to facilitate independent learning and how we can support this process. The setting is the English Language Centre (ELC) at City University of Hong Kong (CityU), a teaching department which focuses on the support and enhancement of undergraduate students’ English for general academic purposes.

Hip axis length (HAL), a simple measure obtained from dual X-ray absorptiometry DXA scans of the proximal femur, predicts hip fracture, independent of bone mineral density and age. Owing to a magnification error associated with newer fan-beam DXA, automatic calculation of HAL, which is available in pencil-beam DXA, is inaccurate. The purpose of this study was to model HAL, measured from a pencil-beam DXA, as a function of HAL from a fan-beam DXA combined with other anthropometric measures. Proximal femur scans were performed using pencil- and fan-beam DXA in 21 women (ages 24–60). Height, weight, hip circumference, subject thickness, height of the greater trochanter and anterior superior iliac spine from the scanning table, and HAL as measured by a ruler from the scan printouts were recorded. Anthropometric measurements were taken by two researchers; all but the greater trochanter were reproducible ( r ≥ 0.92). A simple linear model using the manual measurement of HAL from the fan-beam scan, height, weight, body mass index and hip circumference was able to predict HAL measured using the pencil-beam DXA with a high degree of accuracy ( R 2 ≥ 0.96). The fan-beam-acquired values of HAL using our model are nonbiased and accurate estimates of the "gold standard" pencil-beam method. This model may provide researchers and clinicians with a simple method of calculating HAL using fan-beam DXA.