Oral Presentations

Blake Collins | Investigating the role of motivational interviewing and cognitive behavioural therapy in telehealth delivered cardiac rehabilitation programs

Byron Perrin and Dimitri Diacogiorgis | A 3 Year retrospective audit of characteristics of the assessment, diagnosis and management of people with acute charcot neuroarthropathy attending a regional health service

Daniel Wundersitz | Does cardiac arrhythmia in recreational cyclists increase after high volume exercise?

Steve Barrett | Complexities and context in the scale-up of a physical activity coaching intervention: A process evaluation

Brett Gordon | Implementing exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation in regional Australia. Does it align with recommendations?

Poster Presentations

Jane McCaig, Brett Gordon, Carolyn Taylor | Exercise interventions on the acute medical ward: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Congratulations to Human Performance Co-Lead Dr Daniel Wundersitz and Holsworth Research Initiative Research Assistant Dr Blake Collins who achieved second place in the best presentation at the conference and the best early career researcher presentation, respectively.

The post HOLSWORTH RESEARCH INITIATIVE STAFF AWARDED FOR THEIR RESEARCH CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

When we exercise too much

Nearly 20% of the population meet or exceed physical activity guidelines and the World Health Organisation suggests that we should be aiming to do more exercise for additional health benefit. While exercise is good for us, and great for the heart, sometimes too much exercise may lead to heart problems. As a result, we must understand what the impact of endurance exercise is on the heart.

Systematic review and meta-analysis results

Holsworth Research Initiative researcher, Dr Dan Wundersitz and his team of international and La Trobe Rural Health School researchers firstly investigated the effect of endurance cycling on the heart.

Dan and his team diligently sifted through the research and found that endurance cyclists have larger hearts relative to body size than non-athletes, and even when compared to participants in other active sports such as kayakers, canoeists, runners, swimmers, body builders and wrestlers this difference remained.

In addition, they found that endurance cyclists have an increased incidence of cardiac problems compared to non-athletes, but no more than other sport athletes.

MADRIDE results

When the team worked with participants in the MADRIDE, they found that recreational cyclists had a ten-fold increase in the rate of heart arrhythmias after this 21-day endurance cycling event.

Next they wanted to understand how endurance cycling influenced the heart and if this had any lasting effect (over multiple days).

Endurance exercise and abnormal arrhythmias

Recently, they completed a study assessing how heart arrhythmias change in response to a bout of high-volume exercise and to identify factors associated with abnormal arrhythmias.

This was the first study to monitor participants for nine days straight. Over this time they found 68% of participants displayed abnormal arrhythmias.

In addition, they found the proportion of participants with abnormal ventricular arrhythmias was higher on the exercise day (study under review). Now they want to understand how endurance exercise influences heart health by screening ~350 recreationally active adults. Once complete, they will look for ways to improve the hearts ability to handle the stress of endurance exercise so that people can perform physical activity safer.

You can read a promotional snippet about this work here Endurance exercise and heart health, News, La Trobe University

A call for volunteers

Dan and his team are recruiting volunteers for their next study. Are you a recreationally active adult who would like to have a FREE heart health assessment and VO2peak test as part of our next study? You will be asked to visit us once at the La Trobe University Flora Hill campus physiology clinic located in Bendigo Victoria. 

If you are interested in participating, please read this flyer to confirm your eligibility and to find out to get in touch with us.

Want to read more?

Endurance exercise and abnormal arrhythmias – Bendigo Advertiser and ABC News

Could too much cycling cause heart problems? A world-first study in Bendigo aims to find out – ABC News

Wundersitz, Gordon, Lavie, et al., Impact of endurance exercise on the heart of cyclists: A systematic review and meta-analysis, Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases (2020)

Wundersitz, Williamson, Nadurata, et al., The impact of a 21-day ultra-endurance ride on the heart in young, adult and older adult recreational cyclists, International Journal of Cardiology (2019)

Wundersitz, Nadurata, Lavie, et al., Response: Arrhythmias 72 hour post strenuous exercise at a time when cardiac troponin was not elevated, International Journal of Cardiology (2019)

Collins, Kingsley, Gordon, et al., Coagulation activity and thrombotic risk following high-volume endurance exercise in recreationally active cyclists. Journal of Applied Physiology (2024)

The post The impact of endurance exercise on heart health appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

In the episode ‘Run Before You Can Walk’, Jenny and Frank discuss the physical activity tests that they undertook under the guidance of the HRI team when they visited the La Trobe University Flora Hill campus in September this year. Brett, Blake and Dan were able to provide Frank and Jenny with an overall assessment of their health and function after their body composition was examined, aerobic and anaerobic fitness measured and their muscular strength, endurance and power determined.

Using state of the art equipment within the La Trobe Rural Health School Exercise Physiology laboratory, Frank and Jenny undertook a Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) scan, blood glucose test, isokinetic dynamometry, Wingate Anaerobic Test and Maximal Aerobic Test (V̇O₂ max). See below footage of Frank performing a Maximal Aerobic Test and listen to the podcast episode ‘Run Before You Can Walk’ in full on Spotify and Apple.

The post Holsworth Research Initiative Stream Leads feature in Spirit Levels Podcast appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

# How does sport participation contribute to total physical activity, health, function and wellbeing in regional Victoria?

# The effect of endurance exercise on cardiovascular function and movement efficiency in community level cycling

# Efficacy of e-Bike use for improving health and function

Efficacy of e-Bike use for improving health and function

The benefits of active travel, and cycling, on health have been well researched with a recent systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrating the lowest risk of CVD mortality with 130 minutes per week of cycling at an average, self-selected pace (Zhao et al., 2021). In terms of e-biking, studies have reported that e-biking enables people to achieve moderate levels of physical activity (Sperlich et al., 2012) in addition to reducing travel time when compared to push bikes (Fishman & Cherry, 2016) however, the impacts on health are less clear.

Led by Dr Rodrigo Bini, the E-biking for Human Health project incorporates three individual studies that aim to assess the efficacy of e-bike use for improving health and function in sedentary people. The project consists of an observational study identifying if current health and functional status impacts e-bike uptake in sedentary people as well as an intervention study that will assess changes in physical fitness following a short, unsupervised e-bike aerobic training program. A final randomised control study will build on these research outcomes by comparing the differences between e-bikes, walking and education in health and fitness outcomes of sedentary people.

Progress

Three e-bikes were purchased by the Holsworth Research Initiative for the project in mid-2022. This enabled pilot trials to commence followed by participant recruitment and subsequent data collection. Participants were required to attend La Trobe University Bendigo campus for physical fitness and health assessments as well as a series of familiarity trials before being provided with an e-bike for use for a period of four weeks. Data collection is almost complete with the remaining three participants currently completing their four-week block of unsupervised aerobic training. Following this, analysis of the data will take place and a draft manuscript will be prepared. The expected project completion date for both study one and two is January 2024. The final study in the E-biking for Human Health project is contingent on external funding with a projected start date of January 2024.

We are so pleased to be contributing to the literature on e-biking for human health and can’t wait to report on the findings of these studies in 2024.

Zhao, Y., Hu, F., Feng, Y., Yang, X., Li, Y., Guo, C., … & Hu, D. (2021). Association of Cycling with Risk of All-Cause and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality: A Systematic Review and Dose–Response Meta-analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies. Sports Medicine, 51, 1439-1448.

Fishman, E., and C. Cherry. 2016. E-bikes in the Mainstream: Reviewing a Decade of Research. Transport Reviews 36: 72–91.

Sperlich, B., C. Zinner, K. Hebert-Losier, D.P. Born, and H.C. Holmberg. 2012. Biomechanical, Cardiorespiratory, Metabolic and Perceived Responses to Electrically Assisted Cycling. European Journal of Applied Physiology 112: 4015–4025.

The post Spotlight on HRI Streams: Human Performance appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

Our new blog mini series will be starting soon as well as our first seminar in the Holsworth Research Initiative Seminar Series for 2023. Following on from the impressive speakers of 2022 which included Dr Carl Lavie, Associate Professor Monica Maly and Solve CHD Investigator and NHMRC grant recipient Professor Julie Redfern, our 2023 Seminar Series is bound to impress. Watch this space for some exciting announcements to be made in the coming weeks!

Starting in March, our latest blog mini-series will be updating you all on research that is currently being conducted in the HRI by our Higher Degree by research students. From knee and hip osteoarthritis to match-play demands in Australian Rules Football, our students are investigating a myriad of topics that strongly align with the Initiative’s aims. We look forward to releasing the first profile featuring Mr Hugo Eduardo de Amorim who came to the Holsworth Research Initiative in 2021. His research is investigating exercise-based rehabilitation and knee/hip osteoarthritis and is supervised by HRI Director, Professor Michael Kingsley.

We hope you have a wonderful 2023 and we look forward to sharing our stories with you this year.

The post The Holsworth Research Initiative Blog returns for 2023 appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

The HRI Director and Stream Leaders have had the privilege of supervising a number of higher degree by research students since the Holsworth Research Initiative began in 2019. These students now work across a broad range of industries including academia, applied sports science and clinical practice.

In this new series, we will update our subscribers on where our past HDR students are now and how their research degree with the La Trobe Health School and the Holsworth Research Initiative helped shape their career.

Part 8: Mr Jake Jennings, Sport Scientist, Brisbane Broncos NRL team

Part Eight of our Where Are They Now blog series features Jake Jennings, a PhD candidate with the HRI and a Sport Scientist with the Brisbane Broncos NRL team. Mr Jennings is currently in the final stages of his PhD with a likely submission date early in 2023. Jake’s supervisory team consists of HRI Director Professor Michael Kingsley, HRI Stream Leader Dr Daniel Wundersitz, HRI Research Coordinator Dr Courtney Sullivan and Lecturer at La Trobe University, Dr Stephen Cousins. This PhD was made possible due to an industry scholarship involving both AFL Victoria and the Bendigo Pioneers. An industry PhD connects industry partners to La Trobe’s world-leading research capabilities, while addressing a problem that is of direct relevance to the organisation. This saw Mr Jennings embedded within the Bendigo Pioneers NAB League football team where he provided high-performance services to the team while also collecting data for each study within his thesis.

Draft success in junior Australian Rules Football

Mr Jennings and his supervisory team are investigating match-play demands, and characteristics associated with draft success in male elite-junior Australian Rules football players. Although his thesis has not yet been submitted for review, an original study from his thesis has been published in a peer-reviewed journal with a further three papers currently under review.

Physical testing characteristics better explain draft outcome than in-game movement profile in junior elite Australian rules football players

A dream to work in elite sport

In the final year of his PhD and at the end of 2021, Mr Jennings was offered the full-time role of Sport Scientist at the Brisbane Broncos NRL team which required him to relocate to Brisbane. Additionally, Mr Jennings made the decision to convert his PhD to part-time to enable sufficient time to dedicate to his role in elite sport. Throughout this year, Mr Jennings has continued to refine his thesis and submit completed manuscripts to peer-reviewed journals with the aim of thesis submission in the first quarter of the new year. In regards to his current role, Mr Jennings reports utilising many of the skills that he has developed throughout his PhD studies in the everyday operations of the Sport Science department. When asked about his career aspirations, Mr Jennings stated that he hoped to continue his journey in professional sport with a view to high-performance management.

And that’s a wrap! After 8 weeks we have finally come to the end of our Where Are They Now mini-blog series. Missed our previous posts in this series? Read them at the HRI blog using the links below and while you’re there, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter so you can stay informed of all the latest HRI news.

Bendigo local GP Dr Stephen Bovalino

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Mid-Sweden University Dr Craig Staunton

Allied Health Education & Research Manager at Goulburn Valley Health, Dr Emma Macdonald

Allied Health Research and Knowledge Translation Lead, Bendigo Health, Dr Stephen Barrett

High Performance Manager at Old Scotch Football Club, Dr Jodie Palmer

Teaching-Focused Lecturer at La Trobe University, Dr Paul Xanthos

Sport and Exercise Medicine Registrar, Dr Samantha May

The post Jake Jennings appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

The HRI Director and Stream Leaders have had the privilege of supervising a number of higher degree by research students since the Holsworth Research Initiative began in 2019. These students now work across a broad range of industries including academia, applied sports science and clinical practice.

In this new series, we will update our subscribers on where our past HDR students are now and how their research degree with the La Trobe Health School and the Holsworth Research Initiative helped shape their career.

Part 6: Dr Paul Xanthos, Teaching-Focused Lecturer, Sport and Exercise Science, La Trobe University

Part Six of our Where Are They Now blog series features Dr Paul Xanthos, a previous PhD student of the HRI and a current Teaching-Focused Lecturer in the discipline of Sport and Exercise Science at La Trobe University.

Dr Paul Xanthos completed his PhD in 2019 under the supervision of HRI Director Professor Michael Kingsley and Active Rural Individuals Stream Leader Associate Professor Brett Gordon. During his PhD studies, Dr Xanthos developed a relationship with cardiology department staff members at Bendigo Health including the Director of Cardiology, Dr Voltaire Nadurata. It was through this relationship with Bendigo Health and the cardiac rehabilitation team that Dr Xanthos was able to recruit participants for his intervention studies.

Cardiac rehabilitation in regional Australia

Dr Xanthos and his supervisory team investigated the functional outcomes from exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation in regional Australia. The submitted thesis consisted of a series of four studies with two published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.

A comparison of age-standardised event rates for acute and chronic coronary heart disease in metropolitan and regional/remote Victoria. A retrospective cohort study.

The effectiveness of an Australian cardiac rehabilitation program following current national guidelines

Implementing resistance training in the rehabilitation of coronary heart disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Are changes in physical and cardiovascular function effected by shorter-duration cardiac rehabilitation that includes resistance training?

Dr Xanthos’s PhD consisted of a systematic review and meta-analysis, two cohort studies and a randomised control trial. The main findings from these studies were;

# Increasing chronic coronary heart disease event rates in Victoria and higher acute and chronic CHD event rates in regional/remote areas when compared to metropolitan areas, highlight the need to enhance secondary prevention measures, particularly in regional locations.

# The lack of systematic progression in exercise volume undertaken throughout standard-care cardiac rehabilitation suggests that standard-care cardiac rehabilitation might not elicit sufficient physiological adaptation in some patients to change physical function or arterial stiffness.

# Modifying standard-care cardiac rehabilitation to include purposefully prescribed resistance training can improve physical function.

# In practice, cardiovascular function did not appear to further improve after a shorter-duration combined purposefully prescribed resistance training and aerobic training CR program when compared to a longer aerobic-based CR program.

# Purposeful exercise prescription appears required to maximise improvements in physical and cardiovascular function after cardiac rehabilitation.

A focus on teaching craft

Dr Xanthos currently works for our very own La Trobe University and is based on the Bundoora campus where he teaches undergraduate sport and exercise science students. He is also currently completing a Graduate Certificate in Higher Education which he is expecting to complete by the end of 2022. Although the scope to apply his research findings has been limited, Dr Xanthos reports incorporating his research experience into teaching, particularly regarding exercise testing. When asked about his career aspirations, Dr Xanthos expressed his enjoyment of his current role and the desire to further develop his teaching craft to help develop high-quality sport and exercise science graduates. The temptation of academia remains though, with Dr Xanthos reporting a longer-term goal of a research-related career where he can focus on using exercise to improve both health and athletic performance outcomes.

Up next week is Part seven of our 8-part blog series. We will be following up with Dr Samantha May, a Sport and Exercise Medicine Registrar with Alphington Sports Medicine Clinic and Club Doctor for the Melbourne Vixens Netball Team.

Missed our previous posts in this series? Read them at the HRI blog using the links below and while you’re there, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter so you can stay informed of all the latest HRI news.

Bendigo local GP Dr Stephen Bovalino

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Mid-Sweden University Dr Craig Staunton

Allied Health Education & Research Manager at Goulburn Valley Health, Dr Emma Macdonald

Allied Health Research and Knowledge Translation Lead, Bendigo Health, Dr Stephen Barrett

High Performance Manager at Old Scotch Football Club, Dr Jodie Palmer

The post Dr Paul Xanthos appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

The HRI Director and Stream Leaders have had the privilege of supervising a number of higher degree by research students since the Holsworth Research Initiative began in 2019. These students now work across a broad range of industries including academia, applied sports science and clinical practice.

In this new series, we will update our subscribers on where our past HDR students are now and how their research degree with the La Trobe Health School and the Holsworth Research Initiative helped shape their career.

Part 5: Miss Jodie Palmer, High Performance Manager Old Scotch Football Club and Strength and Conditioning Coach Camberwell Grammar School

Part Five of our Where Are They Now blog series features Miss Jodie Palmer, a current PhD candidate of the HRI and the current High Performance Manager at Old Scotch Football Club.

Miss Palmer is a current PhD student of the HRI and is supervised by HRI Director Professor Michael Kingsley and Human Performance stream leaders Dr Rodrigo Bini and Dr Daniel Wundersitz. Miss Palmer completed her pre-submission review presentation in July this year and expects the conferral of her doctorate degree in the coming months. A unique aspect of Miss Palmers research has been her involvement with the Bendigo Basketball Association. Thanks to an industry partnership between La Trobe University and the Bendigo Spirit and Braves, Miss Palmer was embedded with the teams in a mutually beneficial arrangement that saw Miss Palmer provide Sport Science services while collecting data for her PhD.

Exercise intensity in professional basketball

Miss Palmers PhD is investigating on-court exercise intensity in professional basketball and how basketball performance can be improved using 3D Microtechnology. Although her thesis is not yet available publicly, Miss Palmer has published a number or original studies from her thesis in peer-reviewed journals.

Criterion validity of an automated method of detecting live play periods in basketball

Effect of player role and competition level on player demands in basketball

On-Court Activity and Game-Related Statistics during Scoring Streaks in Basketball: Applied Use of Accelerometers

Residual neuromuscular fatigue influences subsequent on-court activity in basketball

So far, Miss Palmer and her supervisory team have published a paper establishing the criterion validity of an automated method using accelerometry technology to detect the start and end of live play periods in professional basketball matches. Once this was established, Miss Palmer was then able to use the live play detection technique to further investigate factors that influence on-court activity in professional basketball including player role, competition level, scoring streaks and neuromuscular fatigue. Conclusions from these studies include;

# In regard to player role, professional basketball players should prepare for the greatest match demands they could encounter during a season to improve performance and reduce injury risk.

# Basketball players might need their training volume managed when transitioning from a semi-professional to a professional season to reduce the injury risk from sharp increases in training demands.

# Maintaining high levels of exercise intensity in professional and semi-professional basketball matches assists in reducing the chance that an opposing team will engage in a scoring streak (when a team scores three times in a row)

# To maximise the probability of a scoring streak, a basketball team should aim to shoot more 2-point shots, at a 3:1 2-point to 3-point ratio.

# Residual neuromuscular fatigue can influence the amount of supramaximal activity players perform in a subsequent training session or match.

# Practices should be implemented to minimise residual neuromuscular fatigue carried into matches while maintaining a sufficient training volume to elicit physiological adaptations.

A passion for women’s sport

Miss Palmer is very much looking forward to receiving her doctorate degree and stated that she needs a break from academia, a sentiment expressed by many higher degree by research students at the conclusion of their PhD journey. Miss Palmer has transferred the skills she learnt during her PhD studies and her time embedded within the Bendigo Braves and Spirits teams, to her current roles as the High-Performance Manager of the Old Scotch Football club in Melbourne, Victoria and the Strength and Conditioning Coach at Camberwell Grammar School. When asked about her career aspirations, Miss Palmer reiterated her passion for women’s sport and her desire to work at the elite level in a Sports Science or High-Performance role.

Up next week is Part six of our 8-part blog series. We will be following up with Dr Paul Xanthos, ateaching-focused Lecturer in the discipline of Sport and Exercise Science at La Trobe University.

Missed our previous posts in this series? Read them at the HRI blog using the links below and while you’re there, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter so you can stay informed of all the latest HRI news.

Bendigo local GP Dr Stephen Bovalino

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Mid-Sweden University Dr Craig Staunton

Allied Health Education & Research Manager at Goulburn Valley Health, Dr Emma Macdonald

Allied Health Research and Knowledge Translation Lead, Bendigo Health, Dr Stephen Barrett

The post Miss Jodie Palmer appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

The HRI Director and Stream Leaders have had the privilege of supervising a number of higher degree by research students since the Holsworth Research Initiative began in 2019. These students now work across a broad range of industries including academia, applied sports science and clinical practice.

In this new series, we will update our subscribers on where our past HDR students are now and how their research degree with the La Trobe Health School and the Holsworth Research Initiative helped shape their career.

Part 3: Dr Emma Macdonald, Allied Health Education & Research Manager, Goulburn Valley Health

Part Three of our Where Are They Now blog series features Dr Emma Macdonald, a former PhD student of the HRI and the current Allied Health Education & Research Manager at Goulburn Valley Health in Shepparton.

Dr Macdonald is one of our most recent graduates, with her PhD conferred in 2022. Supervised by HRI Director, Professor Michael Kingsley and La Trobe University Senior Lecturer, Dr Byron Perrin, Dr Macdonald completed her PhD part time while working full time across a number of roles and raising a young family. To add to what would have been an already challenging task, Dr Macdonald also completed her studies remotely, engaging with her supervisory team predominantly via video conferencing. Dr Macdonald credits her supervisory team with providing the support and structure that enabled her to meet her obligations to her employers and family while also being successful in her research journey.

Mobile health foot monitoring technology

Dr Macdonald and her team investigated the adoption of mobile health foot monitoring technology in people with diabetes-related foot disease. The submitted thesis consisted of a series of four studies.

Enablers and barriers to using two-way information technology to manage diabetes in adults: a descriptive systematic review.

Factors influencing behavioural intention to use a smart shoe insole in regionally based adults with diabetes: a mixed methods study.

Factors influencing Australian podiatrists’ behavioural intentions to adopt a smart insole into clinical practice: a mixed methods study

Podiatrist-delivered health coaching to facilitate the use of a smart insole to support foot health monitoring in people with diabetes-related peripheral neuropathy: a feasibility study

An initial systematic review helped Dr Macdonald and her team to identify the barriers that people face in using technology to support the management of diabetes-related foot disease. Numerous barriers were identified leading Dr Macdonald to conclude that any technology presented as a management option should be automated, streamlined, mobile and low cost. Prior to designing a follow-up intervention study, Dr Macdonald investigated the behavioural intention of both adults with diabetes-related foot disease and podiatrists in the Goulburn Valley area to adopting smart insole technology as an option to support the management of diabetes. Using a mixed-methods design, Dr Macdonald found that several psychosocial factors influenced the behaviour intention of adults with diabetes including attitude, self-efficacy, performance expectancy and effort expectancy. In terms of adopting the smart insole into clinical practice, the most important psychosocial factor that predicted behavioural intention of regional podiatrists was device efficacy. Using this knowledge, Dr Macdonald designed a podiatrist-led intervention study to support the adoption of smart insole technology for regionally based adults living with diabetes-related foot disease.

In what demonstrates the impact and reach of Dr Macdonald’s research, the systematic review that identified barriers to using technology in diabetes-related foot disease management has been cited in the 2022 National Standards for Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support. These standards are revised every five years by an expert panel and provide guidance and an evidence base for all diabetes self-management education and support services.

Maintaining a rural focus

Dr Macdonald completed her PhD in the Goulburn Valley, recruiting participants for her research from this same region. She has opted to remain here, retaining the rural focus of her studies, and allowing the Goulburn Valley to benefit from her research knowledge and expertise.

Upon completion of her PhD, Dr Macdonald worked in clinical practice as a senior podiatrist before moving across to Goulburn Valley Health where she took on the task of Allied Health Research Knowledge Translation Lead. Dr Macdonald now manages this department as the Allied Health Education & Research Manager where she is the intermediary between clinical practice and research. In addition to this, Dr Macdonald is also undertaking further study with a Graduate Diploma in Health Management. When asked about her future career aspirations, Dr Macdonald stated that she plans on continuing to engage in research that leads to the prevention of lower limb ulceration and amputation in people living with diabetes as well as continuing to use her research skills to support allied health staff to engage in research.

Keep an eye on your inbox next Monday for Part four of our 8-part blog series. We will be following up with Dr Stephen Barrett, Allied Health Research & Knowledge Translation Lead at Bendigo Health.

Missed our previous posts in this series? Read them at the HRI blog using the links below and while you’re there, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter so you can stay informed of all the latest HRI news.

Bendigo local GP Dr Stephen Bovalino

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Mid-Sweden University Dr Craig Staunton

The post Dr Emma Macdonald appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.

The HRI Director and Stream Leaders have had the privilege of supervising a number of higher degree by research students since the Holsworth Research Initiative began in 2019. These students now work across a broad range of industries including academia, applied sports science and clinical practice.

In this new series, we will update our subscribers on where our past HDR students are now and how their research degree with the La Trobe Health School and the Holsworth Research Initiative helped shape their career.

Part 1: Dr Stephen Bovalino, General Practitioner, Bendigo Primary Care Centre

Dr Bovalino completed his Masters degree in 2021 under the supervision of HRI Director, Professor Michael Kingsley and Dr Neil Cunningham, an Emergency Medicine Physician at St Vincent’s Hospital in Victoria, Australia. Dr Bovalino’s degree and the research component formed part of his specialisation training in the Australasian College of Sports and Exercise Physicians (ACSEP) Registrar Training Program. Now working as a General Practitioner at the Bendigo Primary Care Centre, Dr Bovalino credits his Masters degree with developing the skills to apply research principles and critical thinking in his role as a medical doctor.

What was studied and what was found?

Dr Bovalino and his supervisory team investigated the effect of long-distance overground running on foot strike patterns and performance. The submitted thesis consisted of two individual but linked projects including a systematic review and meta-analysis and a cross sectional study.

Foot Strike Patterns During Overground Distance Running: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Change in foot strike patterns and performance in recreational runners during a road race: A cross-sectional study

The former quantified the prevalence of foot strike patterns, assessed the impact of increased running distance on foot strike pattern change and investigated the relationship between foot strike pattern and performance. The review evaluated twelve eligible articles concluding;

# Most distance runners adopt a rearfoot strike pattern early within a race setting, with rearfoot strike patterns more commonly observed with increased distances.

# Of those distance runners that do change foot strike pattern during a race, the majority transition from non-rearfoot (midfoot or forefoot) to rearfoot.

# No evidence was found to support a competitive advantage in using the non-rearfoot strike pattern in favour of a rearfoot strike pattern.

Following the systematic review, Dr Bovalino undertook an observational, cross-sectional study to characterise foot strike pattern and observe changes in foot strike patterns with increasing distance during the 2017 Melbourne City to Sea recreational running event. This study was unique, addressing a gap in the literature for evaluating foot strike patterns in recreational runners at relatively short distances (compared to previous investigations assessing ultra-distance events).

During the 2017 Melbourne City to Sea recreational running event, those runners who adopted either a forefoot or midfoot strike pattern at both the 3 and 13 km checkpoints completed the 15 km race faster than those who used a rear-foot strike pattern. Furthermore, completion time for the non-rearfoot strike pattern runners was also faster than those who began the race with a non-rearfoot strike pattern but then changed to a rearfoot strike pattern by the second checkpoint.

What’s next?

Although Dr Bovalino initially undertook training in Sports Medicine, he has since deviated in his career, opting to practice as an accredited General Practice Registrar instead. He now works locally at Bendigo Primary Care Centre and has aspirations of medical practice ownership as well as continuing academic research.

If you are especially interested in reading more about recreational, distance running and foot strike patterns you can read Dr Bovalino’s submitted thesis here.

Keep an eye on your inbox next Monday for Part two of our 8-part blog series. We will be following up with Dr Craig Staunton, a former PhD candidate of the HRI who is applying his research outcomes to winter discipline sports as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Mid Sweden University.

The post Dr Stephen Bovalino appeared first on Holsworth Research Initiative.