Background: The population sector of elders is progressively increasing, and it is estimated that it will reach almost one third of the total population in 2025. Large number of elders is suffering from knee osteoarthritis (OA) as the most prevalent rheumatic diseases worldwide. Recently there is a growing concern among researchers and health professionals regarding the impact of knee OA on elders and their quality of life (QOL). Objectives: To explore the impact of knee OA on QOL among Saudi elders aged between 60-70 years and to define which of the Short from survey (SF-36) domain (s) and which component, physical or mental, are mostly affected by this knee OA. In addition to study the presence of correlation between scores of SF-36 domains and components and the following factors; patient's age, gender, weight, height, body mass index (BMI), disease duration and severity, educational level, stability of the income source, income, housing type, housing ownership, and care giver. Subjects and Methods: This study was carried out during (December/ 2010 - March/ 2011). One hundred and twenty Saudi elders, (58, 48.3% male), aged between 60-70 years with mean± SD (64.5 ± 3.03) participated in this comparative study. Half of them had severe knee OA, as defined by knee society score (KSS), they were recruited from King Saud Medical City. The other half were without knee OA, were recruited from Prince Salman Social Center and the Saudi association for the Cooperative Retirees. Arabic version of Short Form -36 questionnaire was used to measure participants QOL domains scores as well as the overall scores of the physical and mental components of the questionnaire. Data collected were statistically treated and presented in tables. Results: Current study showed a better significant scores for Saudi elders without knee OA on all SF-36 domains (p = 0.0001). Calculating the patients' domain's scores as percentage from the maximum domain's scores which showed that, the mental health component of elders patients was more affected than physical health component and that role limitation due to emotional problems domain (RLEP) was the most affected domain (22.7%). Physical component showed positive correlation with income (r= 0.320, P= 0.013). While mental component showed negative correlation with disease duration (r = -0.341, P=0.008). Conclusion: Knee OA has negative impact on Saudi elders' QOL. Mental health component was more affected than physical health component. Consequently RLEP domain was the most affected domain. Patients' QOL was positively correlated to income and negatively correlated to disease duration.

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Rationale: To determine the amount of physical activity (PA) among our staff and if it meets the daily-recommended minimum PA set by the American Heart Association. Materials and Methods: A questionnaire developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to measure and assess the PA was distributed to hospital staff. The questionnaire has 16 items of three domains (activity at work, travel, and recreation) which were coded to measure the total physical activity (TPA) of each individual per day. Domains were calculated and analyses were done. Results: Of 134 participants, 81 (60.4%) were males and 53 (39.6%) were females. There were 48 (35.8%) students, 44 (32.8%) residents, and 42 (31.3%) consultants. Mean BMI was 26.4 ± 5.9. Males had significantly higher BMI than females and were spending significantly more time for vigorous recreational activities than females. Males were significantly more overweight to obese than females. Residents and consultants were more overweight to obese than medical students. The overweight to obese individuals spend less than 3000 minutes per week on activities. Overall, there were 64 (47.8%) who did not meet the AHA physical activity guidelines and have low TPA. An insignificant majority (n = 70, 52.2%) of our respondents have moderate to high TPA. Conclusion: Almost half of our respondents do not meet the AHA required PA thus there is still a need to encourage and facilitate the increase in PA among our employees in our institution through information campaigns, proper support for physical fitness programs and provision of adequate fitness facilities.

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Background: Adaptive processes to high-altitude-induced hypoxia imply complex modifications in several endocrine and metabolic functions. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of submaximal aerobic activity on serum cortisol and testosterone levels in normoxia and hypoxic conditions in trained young men. Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of 17 healthy men, aged 20-25 years, with mean maximal oxygen uptake and BMI of 48.6 ± 3.96 ml/kg/min and 21.6 ± 0.91 kg/m ² , respectively. They performed 30-min running on treadmill, at the intensity of 70% of maximal heart rate, in normoxia and at simulated altitudes of 2750, 3250 and 3750 m. The sessions were interfered with 72-h resting intervals. Blood samples for hormonal assays were obtained before exercise and at 0 h and 1 h post-exercise. Data analyses were performed, using the SPSS version 16. Results: Serum cortisol had not significant changes following exercise under normoxic and hypoxic conditions. Post-exercise total testosterone showed decreased levels in hypoxic conditions comparing to normoxia which was significant at 1 h post-exercise. Decreased level of post-exercise free testosterone was also observed at simulated altitudes above 3000 m that was significant at 0 h post-exercise values and accompanied with raising pattern during 1 h later. Conclusion: It seems that hormonal responses following exercise at high-altitude tend towards maintaining homeostasis. However, more accurate conclusion requires further investigations with repeated measurements.

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Sports injuries are injuries that occur in athletic activities. In many cases, these injuries are due to overuse or acute trauma of a part of the body when participating in a certain activity. Sports Dentistry is the treatment and prevention of oral/facial athletic injuries and related oral diseases and manifestations. In sports, the challenge is to maximize the benefits of participation and to limit injuries. Prevention and adequate preparation are the key elements in minimizing injuries that occur in sport. Treatment of oral/facial injuries, simple or complex, is to include not only treatment of injuries at the dental office, but also treatment at the site of injury, where the dentist may not have the convenience of all the diagnostic tools available at their office. Preseason screenings and examinations are essential in preventing injuries. Examinations are to include health histories, at risk dentitions, diagnosis of caries, maxilla/mandibular relationships, orthodontics, loose teeth, dental habits, crown and bridge work, missing teeth, artificial teeth, and the possible need for extractions for orthodontic concerns or wisdom teeth. These extractions should be done months prior to playing competitive sports as to not interfere with their competition or weaken their jaws during competition. Determination of the need for a specific type and design of mouthguard is made at this time.

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This study evaluated the exercise-induced changes in circulating cortisol and testosterone levels, as anabolic and catabolic hormones, to determine various factors influencing on these hormonal levels in males. It seems that exercise intensity has a contributory role in this regard, which must be more investigated.

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A thigh splint (adductor insertion avulsion syndrome) is a relatively uncommon diagnosis analogous to shin splints. This article reports a case of 19-year-old female NOT a regular athlete who presented with groin pain. Physical examination was nonspecific, MRI pelvis did not reveal any abnormality. Patient referred for whole body bone scan, especially to locate any abnormality in the spine. This study highlights the role of whole body bone scan in the evaluation of groin pain and importance of evaluation of whole lower extremity.

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Since the introduction of Jet Skis, also known as Peronal Water Crafts, the related injuries are increasing due to the increased popularity and use. Perineal injuries are reported as a result of such Jet Ski injuries. We report a case of perineal injury as a result of a Jet Ski injury. We reviewed the current therapeutic modalities and in conclusion prevention remains the essential part in avoiding these injuries and high index of suspension contribute efficiently in the successful management.

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Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the MRI appearances and various patterns of ligament and meniscus tears in knee joint injuries and to correlate the clinical findings with MRI findings. Materials and Methods: Our study included 50 patients, who were referred to radiology department for MRI of knee joint following injury. Prior to MRI, a detailed clinical and local examination was done in all the subjects. MRI was carried out on MAGNETOM Avanto 18 Channel 1.5 Tesla Machine by Siemens India Ltd and the standard protocol consisted of PD(TE 45 TR 2800), T2W(TE 73 TR 5090), fat suppressed T2W(TE 26 TR 5000) spin echo sequences in axial, sagittal and coronal planes. The MRI findings were compared with arthroscopic findings in 30 subjects and in rest of the subjects characteristic MRI features were considered diagnostic. Results: Diagnostic accuracy of clinical examination (83%) was relatively low as compared to MR examination (88%) in our study. The percentage correlation between clinical and MRI findings regarding presence or absence of ligament/meniscus tear was highest in case of PCL tears (94%). Amongst ligament injuries, complete tear of ACL alone was the most common injury (53%) and ACL injury was most commonly associated with MM injury (16%), intrasubstance tears were more common than attachment site tears. Conclusions: MR is unique in its ability to evaluate the architecture as well as the surface of ligaments and menisci. MRI is more sensitive than clinical examination in diagnosing ligament and meniscus injuries.

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Smokeless tobacco has been advocated as a substitute for cigarette smoking. On the contrary, the use of smokeless tobacco is fraught with health risk and needs to be discouraged. Previous reports have described long term harmful effects of smokeless tobacco on various body parameters, little is known about short term effect of smokeless tobacco on cardio respiratory parameters. Very few studies have been undertaken on the effect of short term use of gutkha, a common form of smokeless tobacco in India on cardio respiratory parameters of youngsters. This aspect of use of smokeless tobacco needs to be attended to. The present study has been undertaken to study the effect of short term [3-5 years] gutkha chewing on cardio respiratory fitness tests in young healthy gutkha chewers as compared to age and sex matched non gutkha chewing healthy controls. Various cardio respiratory parameters like resting HR, delta HR, MVV, VE max, VO2 max were studied by using treadmill exercise testing and computerized spirometry. In the present study, no statistically significant difference was found in any parameter studied that can be attributed to the residual effect of short term use of gutkha. This is reason enough to discourage gutkha chewers from this unhealthy habit at this early stage itself before permanent residual effects on health is seen.

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Background: There are conflicting opinions about the degree of adaptability of the cardiovascular system in delivering the physiological needs in case of severe exercise. Role of the normal cardiovascular system in delivering oxygen to meet the demands of various degrees of exercise has been a topic of considerable debate. One view holds that the cardiovascular system is not normally the most limiting factor in the delivery of oxygen, others hold the absence of structural adaptability to physical training cause of limitation of the cardiovascular system. Methods: Cardiovascular functions were assessed after maximal exercise testing by recording parameters like maximum heart rate, delta heart rate, recovery heart rate and maximum oxygen pulse in two groups' viz., athletes and non-athletes. Results: On studying the differences in cardiovascular functions in two groups of non-athletes and athletes, there was no significant difference in maximum heart rate. The other parameters like delta heart rate and maximum oxygen pulse were on the higher side in trained subjects while the recovery heart rate was significantly lower in the athlete group which was consistently maintained after exercise testing. Based on these findings it is suggested that there is a higher adaptability of the cardiovascular system to the training stimulus in the form of better VO2 max (maximum oxygen consumption), faster recovery of the exercise heart rate, and a lesser risk for cardiovascular mortality as suggested by the higher delta heart rate.

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