Faculty of Health Sciences
School of Medicine
Division of Sports Medicine
Selected Highlights from Research Findings
During 2011 Section Sports Medicine (SSM) formed a multi disciplinary research group to investigate cconventional methods for measuring health-related fitness and exercise ability. These often involve laboratory based measurement of cardio-respiratory endurance, body composition, muscular strength and flexibility. A need was identified for a non-invasive battery of tests to easily evaluate, or even self assess and categorize health-related fitness and activity in different population groups. The UP/Momentum Health-Related Fitness Index was developed and tested with great success in a large student population during 2011. This project was initiated and completed by the Section Sports Medicine. The final report and photographs of the data sampling can be viewed (attached).
Other research focus areas investigated by SSM during 2011 included standardisation of non-invasive cardiac autonomic control testing techniques such as heart rate variability and blood pressure variability. These new methods were employed successfully in healthy (SANDF recruits) and clinical groups (rheumatoid arthritis patients). New variations of these developed techniques proved to reveal novel information with regard to exercise induced changes in the sympathetic branch of the ANS function. The innovative use of exercise programs in RA patients to alter autonomic nervous system cardiac control was confirmed with the above mentioned non-invasive techniques. All results were published in accredited, international journals and presented at several international conferences.
Another highlight for Section Sports Medicine was the 90 minute seminar on heart rate variability presented by Dr Christa Janse v Rensburg and Dr Rina Grant during the SASMA Congress 2011. Topics included were:
Heart rate variability: background, opportunities, and pitfalls
Heart rate variability: statistical analysis
Heart rate variability as indicator of exercise capacity and predictor of performance˙results from a 20 week intervention.
Review: heart rate variability and exercise
Contact person: Dr DC Janse van Rensburg.
|
