This new year brings significant enhancements to the Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy that are intended to increase JOSPT's usefulness to you as readers and authors, clinicians and researchers. With this print issue and beginning in February on the Journal's website, we offer you improved design and functionality that build on the JOSPT's 28-year tradition of publishing the best available research and clinical literature in the field.

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007:37(1):1-2. doi:10.2519/jospt.2007.0100

STUDY DESIGN: A multivariate repeated measures independent-group study design.OBJECTIVES: To compare the effect of a craniocervical flexion exercise (CCFEx) program to that of a conventional cervical flexion exercise (CFEx) program in training isometric craniocervical flexor muscle performance. BACKGROUND: The craniocervical flexor muscles are important muscles of the cervical spine, as they have been shown to be impaired in persons with chronic neck pain. While both CCFEx and CFEx protocols have been advocated to train craniocervical flexor muscle performance, at present there is no consensus as to the most effective method. METHODS AND MEASURES: Fifty females with chronic mild neck pain and disability status were randomly allocated into a 6-week program of either CCFEx (n = 27) or CFEx (n = 23). Isometric dynamometry measurements of craniocervical flexor muscle performance (maximal voluntary contraction, endurance at 50% of maximal voluntary contraction) were recorded before and following the exercise program. Changes in craniocervical flexor muscle performance (pretraining-posttraining) within and between exercise groups were analyzed with analysis of variance models. RESULTS: Both exercise interventions significantly improved isometric craniocervical flexor muscle performance (P<.02). No significant differences in improvement of muscle performance were observed between the 2 exercise interventions.CONCLUSION: It appears that isometric craniocervical flexor muscle performance can be trained with either a CCFEx protocol or a conventional CFEx protocol in patients with mild neck pain and disability.  

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):3-9. doi:10.2519/jospt.2007.2237 

KEY WORDS: cervical spine, craniocervical flexion, neck pain, rehabilitation

STUDY DESIGN: Randomized, matched design. BACKGROUND: Optimal rehabilitation following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) requires safe and effective interventions. Negative work exercise (via eccentric muscle activity) has the potential to be highly effective at producing large quadriceps size and strength gains early after ACL-R. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the short-term safety and efficacy of adding a progressive negative work exercise program via eccentric (ECC) ergometry early after ACL-R. METHODS AND MEASURES: Beginning 3 weeks after ACL-R, 32 participants were randomly assigned into either a 12-week traditional (TRAD) or ECC exercise program. Safety was assessed by measuring knee pain, thigh pain, knee effusion, and knee stability prior to surgery and at 3, 15, and 26 weeks after surgery. Efficacy was assessed by measuring negative work output during the 12-week training program and by measuring functional ability (ie, quadriceps peak torque, hopping distance, self-reported functional ability and activity level scales) prior to surgery and 26 weeks after ACL-R. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between groups in measures of knee and thigh pain, effusion, or stability at any period after surgery. Negative work output increased systematically throughout training, while knee and thigh pain remained at relatively low levels. A significant group-by-time interaction was observed for quadriceps peak torque, hopping distance, and activity level (P≤.02). Quadriceps strength and hopping distance of the involved limb improved by a significantly greater amount in the ECC group compared to the TRAD group (P<.01). Activity level decreasedto a lesser extent in the ECC group compared to the TRAD group (P = .02). CONCLUSIONS: Negative work via an ECC intervention was implemented safely after ACLR. The addition of negative work exercise also induced superior short-term results in strength, performance, and activity level after surgery. 

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):10-18. doi:10.2519/jospt.2007.2362 

KEY WORDS: ACL, knee, rehabilitation

STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of idiopathic loss of shoulder range of motion on scapular kinematics. BACKGROUND: Subjects with idiopathic loss of shoulder range of motion have difficulty performing activities of daily living. Previous investigations have focused on the glenohumeral component of shoulder complex motion. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventeen unilaterally impaired and 17 nonimpaired subjects. The 3-dimensional motion of the humerus, scapula, and trunk were measured with the Fastrak electromagnetic motion-tracking system during humerus-to-trunk scapular plane elevation. An analysis of variance compared the impaired subjects noninvolved to the nonimpaired subjects’ scapulae at 4 scapular plane elevation positions. A repeated-measures analysis of variance compared the impaired subjects’ involved and noninvolved scapulae at 3 scapular plane elevation positions, and matched-pairs t test compared peak elevation values. RESULTS: The between-group ANOVAs demonstrated no difference in anterior tipping, internal rotation, or upward rotation. The repeated-measures ANOVAs demonstrated no difference in anterior tipping or internal rotation and a position-by-side interaction in upward rotation. The involved-side scapulae were more upwardly rotated (7.7°) at peak humerus-to-trunk scapular plane elevation. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The impaired subjects’ noninvolved scapular kinematics were not significantly different than the nonimpaired subjects, but were significantly different than their involved scapulae. The upward rotation differences may be a substitution pattern used to accomplish functional elevation. 

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):19-25. doi:10.2519/jospt.2007.2121 

KEY WORDS: biomechanics, motion analysis, scapula, upper extremity

The Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy is pleased to publish abstracts of the 2007 Combined Sections Meeting (CSM), which takes place in Boston, Massachusetts, February 14-18, 2007. This collection of abstracts provides a glimpse into the research presented as part of the scientific programming of the Sports Physical Therapy and Orthopaedic Sections. The number and variety of the presentations scheduled for CSM are testimony to the dynamic research activities underway in the field of physical therapy. The abstracts presented in the following pages are reviewed and selected by members of the research committee of each section based on content and format. The abstracts are not, however, reviewed by the Associate Editors or the Editor-in-Chief of the JOSPT. By design, each abstract presents only a brief summary of a research project—a summary that typically does not permit a full evaluation of the scientific rigor with which the work was conducted. In many cases, these abstracts serve the purpose of sharing new research ideas and, therefore, offer only preliminary results that will require future validation. Yet, presenting this type of research information at CSM plays an important role in encouraging a dialog among researchers, clinicians, and educators. This Combined Sections Meeting provides a valuable forum for learning from clinical and research experts in physical therapy and related fields. Moreover, unlike reading a manuscript in a journal, attending a professional conference presents us the opportunity to interact with the authors—our colleagues—by asking questions and exchanging ideas. 

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007; 37(1):A1

A summary of the schedule of platform and poster research presentations made by the Orthopaedic Section and Sports Physical Therapy Section of the American Physical Therapy Association during APTA’s Combined Sections Meeting, February 14-18, 2007, in Boston, MA.

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007:37(1):A2-A9.

The abstracts are presented here as prepared by the authors. The accuracy and content of each abstract remain the responsibility of the authors. In the identification number above each abstract, OPL designates an Orthopaedic platform presentation. 

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):A10-A35.

The abstracts are presented here as prepared by the authors. The accuracy and content of each abstract remain the responsibility of the authors. In the identification number above each abstract, OPO designates an Orthopaedic poster presentation. 

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):A36-A66.

The abstracts are presented here as prepared by the authors. The accuracy and content of each abstract remain the responsibility of the authors. In the identification number above each abstract, SPL designates a Sports platform presentation.  

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):A67-A78.

The abstracts are presented here as prepared by the authors. The accuracy and content of each abstract remain the responsibility of the authors. In the identification number above each abstract, SPO designates a Sports poster presentation.  

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2007;37(1):A79-A83.