Objective. The objective of this study is to find and compare the effects of isokinetic training and virtual reality training on sports performances in university football players with chronic low back pain. Design. This is a randomized, double‐blinded controlled study. Methods. The study was conducted on 45LBP participants at university hospital. First group (n = 15) received isokinetic training, second group (n = 15) received virtual reality training, and the control group (n = 15) received conventional training exercises for four weeks. Clinical (pain intensity and player wellness) and sports performance (40 m sprint, 4 × 5 m sprint, submaximal shuttle running, countermovement jump, and squat jump) scores were measured at baseline, after 4 weeks, 8 weeks, and 6 months. Results. Four weeks following training VRT group shows more significant changes in pain intensity and player wellness scores than IKT and control groups (p ≤ 0.001). Sports performance variables (such as 40 m sprint, 4 × 5 m sprint, submaximal shuttle running, countermovement jump, and squat jump) scores also show significant improvement in VRT group than the other two groups (p ≤ 0.001). Conclusion. Overall, our study suggests that strength training through virtual reality training protocol improves pain and sports performances than isokinetic training and other conventional trainings in university football players with chronic low back pain.

Introduction: Virtual reality training (VRT) is an advanced technology that creates virtual games by a computer through specific software. It is a type of rehabilitation training commonly used in balance problems to treat musculoskeletal conditions. Objective: To determine and compare the effects of virtual reality games with those of core stabilization training on physical efficiency in soccer players with chronic low back pain. Methods: A randomized, double-blinded, controlled study was conducted on 60 LBP participants at a university hospital. The first group (n=20) received virtual reality (VR) training; the second group (n=20) received core stabilization (CS) training; and the third group (n=20) received conventional training exercises for four weeks. Scores of clinical and sports performance were measured at baseline, and after 4 weeks, 8 weeks and 6 months. Results: The baseline demographic and clinical characters did not show any significant differences (p>0.05) in the statistical analysis, which shows a homogenous population. Four weeks following the training, the VR training group showed more significant changes in clinical scores than the CS training and control groups (p≤0.001). The scores for sports performance also showed more significant improvement in the VR training group than in the other two groups (p≤0.001). The same improved clinical and sports performance changes were seen at 8 weeks and 6 months of follow-up in the VR training group, when compared to the other two groups (p≤0.001). Conclusion: This study suggests that training through virtual reality games results in long-term improvement in clinical and sports performance compared to other forms of training in soccer players with chronic low back pain.Level of evidence I b; Therapeutic studies – Investigation of treatment results.

Background: Physiotherapy protocols based on high-intensity interval training (HIIT) or eccentric hamstring exercises like Nordic Curl (NC) have been scarcely studied in futsal players. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a HIIT combined with an NC exercise program versus a HIIT-only program in futsal players. Methods: Twenty-one futsal players were divided into (1) HIIT + NC group (n = 11, mean age = 21.55 [4.25]); and (2) HIIT group (n = 10, mean age = 20.90 [1.29]). The HIIT + NC group performed a HIIT circuit combined with 3 sets of 10 NC repetitions for 4 weeks, while the HIIT group performed the same protocol without NC exercise. Body mass index, intermittent work performance, vertical jump performance without and with arms, isometric strength of quadriceps and hamstrings, and the isometric hamstrings/quadriceps (H/Q) ratio, were assessed before and after the interventions. Results: The HIIT + NC group and the HIIT group showed a significant improvement in intermittent work performance after the intervention ( P = .04 and P = .01, respectively). Also, both groups showed a trend of increasing quadriceps and hamstring isometric strength, although no significant changes were found ( P > .05). In addition, neither the HIIT + NC protocol nor the HIIT protocol was sufficient to yield changes in body mass index nor to improve the vertical jump performance ( P > .05). Conclusion: Both an isolated HIIT protocol and HIIT in combination with NC exercise improved intermittent work performance in futsal players. The present study’s findings may guide futsal players’ physical preparation and injury prevention programs.

Sarcopenia is the most common feature of hepatic cirrhosis characterized by progressive loss of muscle mass and function and increases permanently the mortality and morbidity rates among those patients. The incidence of sarcopenia in cirrhotic patients ranged 40-70% associating with impaired quality of life and augmented rates of infection. Based on these issues, this review is aimed at determining the prevalence and main causes of sarcopenia among cirrhotic patients and recognizing the recent diagnostic and physical treatment modalities that prevent risk factors for sarcopenia in those patients. No ideal modality is currently demonstrated for diagnosing sarcopenia in hepatic diseases, particularly cirrhosis; however, recent studies reported different diagnostic modalities for muscle function in different individuals including handgrip strength, skeletal muscle index, six-min walk test, liver frailty index, short physical performance battery, and radiological assessments for quadriceps and psoas muscles. Exercise training and therapeutic nutrition are strongly recommended for controlling sarcopenia in cirrhotic patients. The exercise program is designed and carried out on a frequent basis within an extensive scheduled time aimed at improving functional performance, aerobic capacity, and healthy conditions. Finally, a combination of exercise training and therapeutic nutrition is powerfully recommended to control sarcopenia in cirrhosis.

The efficient production of solid-dosage oral formulations using eco-friendly supercritical solvents is known as a breakthrough technology towards developing cost-effective therapeutic drugs. Drug solubility is a significant parameter which must be measured before designing the process. Decitabine belongs to the antimetabolite class of chemotherapy agents applied for the treatment of patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). In recent years, the prediction of drug solubility by applying mathematical models through artificial intelligence (AI) has become known as an interesting topic due to the high cost of experimental investigations. The purpose of this study is to develop various machine-learning-based models to estimate the optimum solubility of the anti-cancer drug decitabine, to evaluate the effects of pressure and temperature on it. To make models on a small dataset in this research, we used three ensemble methods, Random Forest (RFR), Extra Tree (ETR), and Gradient Boosted Regression Trees (GBRT). Different configurations were tested, and optimal hyper-parameters were found. Then, the final models were assessed using standard metrics. RFR, ETR, and GBRT had R2 scores of 0.925, 0.999, and 0.999, respectively. Furthermore, the MAPE metric error rates were 1.423 × 10⁻¹ 7.573 × 10⁻², and 7.119 × 10⁻², respectively. According to these facts, GBRT was considered as the primary model in this paper. Using this method, the optimal amounts are calculated as: P = 380.88 bar, T = 333.01 K, Y = 0.001073.

Background:: Exercise and dietary interventions are used to control dyslipidemia and depression in obese individuals, whilst rare investigations have examined the concurrent effects of a low-fat diet and moderate-intensity aerobic exercise training (MIAET) on dyslipidemia and depression in obese patients. Hence, we assessed the potential influences of a low-fat diet combined with MIAET on blood lipids and depression in those individuals. Methods:: Forty-two obese patients aged 30-50 years have been enrolled in this randomized controlled trial. They have been randomized equally into MIAET group (n=14, 60-70% of the maximum heart rate (Max HR), three sessions a week), a low-fat diet group (n=14, fat, 30% Kcal/day), and a low-fat diet plus MIAET (n=14) for 10 consecutive weeks. Body mass index (BMI), lipid profile, and Hamilton depression rating scale (HDRS) have been assessed on two occasions, pre and post- 10 weeks. Results:: It was demonstrated that a low-fat diet group showed an improvement in total cholesterol (T-Ch), p=0.046, with no changes in triglycerides (TGs), p=0.343, low-density lipoproteins (LDLs), p=0.187, and high-density lipoproteins (HDLs), p=0.224; however, MIAET group showed an improvement in TGs, p=0.042, HDLs, p=0.038 with no changes in T-Ch, p=0.126, and LDLs, p=0.368. Regarding the low-fat diet plus MIAET group, significant improvements were identified in TGs, p=0.003, T-Ch, p<0.001, LDLs, p=0.004, and HDLs, p<0.001. For the depression status, all groups showed a significant improvement in HDRS, p<0.001, with a low-fat diet plus MIAET group showing greater advantages, p<0.05. Conclusion:: The results of the current trial suggest an important implication for promoting improvement in blood lipids and a reduction in depression status in obese patients with dyslipidemia following 10-week of a concurrent low-fat diet and moderate-intensity aerobic exercise more than low-fat diet or MIAEt alone.