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Background and objectives. One in 5 Canadians experience pain which persists longer than 3 months. The magnitude, duration and impact of that pain is determined not only by biological factors, but psychological, sociocultural and behavioral ones as well. This concept is best understood through the lens of the biopsychosocial model of disease, which is now considered most appropriate for chronic pain management. Given that certified athletic therapists (CAT(C)) in clinical practice frequently are in contact with patients experiencing chronic pain, it is essential that they be well prepared to manage this condition. Previous research has found that other healthcare professionals struggle to address psychosocial factors which influence chronic pain outcomes; athletic therapists have not been included in these studies. In this study, I will use a knowledge translation framework to assess CAT(C)s’ knowledge of current pain physiology and influencing factors, and their attitudes and beliefs regarding the management of chronic primary pain. In addition, I will explore what barriers and facilitators CAT(C)s identify to incorporating a biopsychosocial approach in the management of chronic primary pain. Methods. Forty-four CAT(C)s from six provinces completed the Knowledge and Attitudes of Pain Questionnaire. I then conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 10 athletic therapists to further explore barriers and facilitators to the use of a biopsychosocial approach to chronic pain management. The transcribed interviews were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis and the resulting themes were compared to relevant behaviour change constructs from the Theoretical Domains Framework, which was also used to create the interview guide. Results. We reported the mean scores of KNAP scales; knowledge of pain physiology and influencing factors (81.79%), treatment orientation (63.46%) and the total score (76.30%). We identified six themes and 23 subthemes; themes include ther

Injury statistics report that 45% of all athletic injuries are ankle sprains, with 85% of those occurring at the lateral aspect of the ankle. Cryokinetics is a rehabilitation technique that uses cooling with the goal to decrease neural inhibition, thus allowing for greater pain-free range of motion. The present study evaluated how cryokinetics affected sensory perception, range of motion (ROM) and postural stability with previously injured (asymptomatic) versus uninjured ankles. Tactile sensation at the lateral ankle, dorsiflexion at the ankle, as well as postural stability (with eyes open and closed) before and after a cryokinetic protocol were evaluated. The results demonstrate how cryokinetics effects sensory perception, ROM and postural stability in relation to injury history. Two-point discrimination testing demonstrated a significant reduction in tactile acuity after cryokinetics. Functional range of motion testing demonstrated an interaction between a history of ankle injury compared to no injury history, where functional ROM was significantly greater after cryokinetics for previously injured ankles. Overall, vision had the largest impact on postural stability. However, there was an interaction across previous injury history, intervention and vision for median frequency of medial/lateral-Center of Pressure. The current results highlight that ankle injury history is a significant variable when assessing the affects of cryokinetics on functional ROM of ankles and that vision affects postural stability more than cryokinetics. Future research could investigate the effects of cryokinetics on acute care injury management of ankle sprains, and perhaps to ligamentous or soft tissue injuries at joints other than the ankle.

Injury statistics report that 45% of all athletic injuries are ankle sprains, with 85% of those occurring at the lateral aspect of the ankle. Cryokinetics is a rehabilitation technique that uses cooling with the goal to decrease neural inhibition, thus allowing for greater pain-free range of motion. The present study evaluated how cryokinetics affected sensory perception, range of motion (ROM) and postural stability with previously injured (asymptomatic) versus uninjured ankles. Tactile sensation at the lateral ankle, dorsiflexion at the ankle, as well as postural stability (with eyes open and closed) before and after a cryokinetic protocol were evaluated. The results demonstrate how cryokinetics effects sensory perception, ROM and postural stability in relation to injury history. Two-point discrimination testing demonstrated a significant reduction in tactile acuity after cryokinetics. Functional range of motion testing demonstrated an interaction between a history of ankle injury compared to no injury history, where functional ROM was significantly greater after cryokinetics for previously injured ankles. Overall, vision had the largest impact on postural stability. However, there was an interaction across previous injury history, intervention and vision for median frequency of medial/lateral-Center of Pressure. The current results highlight that ankle injury history is a significant variable when assessing the affects of cryokinetics on functional ROM of ankles and that vision affects postural stability more than cryokinetics. Future research could investigate the effects of cryokinetics on acute care injury management of ankle sprains, and perhaps to ligamentous or soft tissue injuries at joints other than the ankle.

Introduction: Following the onset of maturation, female athletes have a significantly higher risk for anterior cruciate ligament injury when compared with male athletes. It is therefore important to evaluate this increased risk in this population and some possible preventative measures. Objective: To examine the effect of a neuromuscular exercise training (NME) program on hip strength and core stability in healthy adolescent females. Study Design: Randomized Clinical Trial which employed a repeated measures design. Participants: Healthy adolescent females aged 12-18 years old. Intervention: A 5-week progressive perturbation NME program was administered according to previously described and validated methodologies. The supervised program was administered 2x/week for 5 weeks. The program consisted of a series of destabilizing perturbations that were applied to the unstable surfaces with the participant in a unilateral stance. Outcome Measurements: Hip external rotation (ER) and hip abduction strength were evaluated using held-hand dynamometry. A dynamic seated stability test was used to evaluate core stability. Vertical jump test using the Vertex was used to evaluate lower extremity functional power and performance. Results: 40 healthy adolescent females (age 13.5 ± 0.2 years, height 165.3 ± 7.5 cm, weight 70.0 ± 25.3 kg, BMI 25.2 ± 6.6 kg/m2) were recruited. Two-way ANOVAs compared hip ER and abduction strength, core stability, and vertical jump pre- and post- NME training between the control and NME groups. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated that the percentage change in hip abduction strength and core stability was different between the control and NME group, with the NME group showing more improvement at follow-up. There was no significant relationship noted between strength scores and core stability or vertical jump performance. Conclusions: Overall, the results suggest the possibility of some impact as a result of the NME program, but more research is stil

Introduction: Canadians are exposed to cold environments much of the year. Cold affects participants in athletic, recreational, commercial and military activities. Cold exposure may change peripheral and/or central temperature, and this may have positive or negative consequences on human physiology and performance. Applied health sciences (AHS) practitioners should understand the wide-ranging consequences that cold exposure has on performance and recovery, and methods for reversing maladies caused by excessive cold exposure (e.g., hypothermia). Methods: Study one: corticospinal and spinal excitability were assessed via transcranial magnetic stimulation (motor cortex) and electrical stimulation (cervicomedullary junction) following skin cooling and rewarming. Results reveal the effects cooling has on areas of signal transmission involved in voluntary movement. Study two: three 30-min recovery strategies were performed between two identical sets of 3x30-s Wingate tests. Recovery periods included; leg cycling in cold or thermoneutral water, or sitting passively in thermoneutral water. Study three: shivering was pharmacologically inhibited in hypothermic participants following cold water immersion. The efficacy of three rewarming strategies were studied: electric heat pad, forced air warming blanket, and spontaneous rewarming. Results: In cold participants spinal excitability is facilitated by reduced skin or core temperature, while corticospinal excitability remains unchanged. Increases in spinal excitability may contribute to shivering, and may compensate for unchanging, or even decreasing corticospinal excitability. Active recovery in cold water successfully decreased core temperature and blood lactate, and likely maintained muscle temperature above baseline values. However, small significant post-recovery decreases in peak and average power occurred. Finally, in 2 hypothermic, non-shivering participants, there were no differences between either active warming method