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Biomedical subjects

A W Sedgwick

Publications and source records attributed to A W Sedgwick.

16 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1994

Changes over four years in musculoskeletal impairment in men and women.

OBJECTIVE: To measure changes over four years in musculoskeletal impairment in a group of healthy adults. DESIGN: Longitudinal intervention study with repeated questionnaire assessments at entry, two and four years. SUBJECTS: Adults who volunteered for a fitness program and complied with all three assessments (373 men and 259 women; mean age 42 years). RESULTS: The general four-year trend was an acceleration of musculoskeletal impairment of about 10% per year for three indicators. Movement limited activities increased to a similar extent in men and women; women showed greater increases in pain or discomfort and specialist consultations. For both sexes the most vulnerable anatomical locations were the lower back, neck and knees, while the most common activities associated with movement limitations were jogging and lifting. Pain or discomfort and movement limited activities were age related. CONCLUSIONS: The findings justify anxieties about the increasing costs of musculoskeletal impairment, and highlight important questions about the nature, monitoring and control of such impairment.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Relationships between weight change and blood lipids in men and women: 'the Adelaide 1000'.

Relationships between changes in weight and blood lipids were examined in 655 subjects who had enrolled for a fitness programme. At entry data were obtained on weight, fitness, lipids, physical activity, diet, and smoking. On re-examination 2 years later approximately half the sample had maintained stable weight (+/- 2 kg), a quarter had lost (- greater than 2 kg), and a quarter had gained weight (+ greater than 2 kg). Analyses of weight change/lipid change relationships included comparisons of lipid changes in weight 'stable', 'losers', and 'gainers' groups, and multiple regression analyses controlling for the effects of age, diet, and fitness. It was found that changes in weight and lipids were significantly related, the relationship was stronger than between any other independent variable and changes in lipids, and it was stronger for men than for women. It was concluded that there is an independent cause and effect relationship between weight and lipids to an extent useful for clinical and public health purposes.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Follow-up of stress-management courses.

A study was made of the effects of stress-management courses on 595 men and women (mean age, 45 +/- 11 years) from one to seven years after they had attended such courses. The course (six 1.5-h sessions) included relaxation training, rational thinking and priority setting and assertiveness training. Evaluation comprised the Paul stress inventory of perceived stress and a questionnaire that dealt with stress and related behaviour and coping skills. The results indicated a substantial reduction in perceived stress immediately after the course which persisted until follow-up; satisfactory persistence in the use of learned coping skills; good reception of the course; and that decreases in perceived stress predicted changes in life-style, a reduced use of stress-related medications and an increased use of relaxation training. Extensive research, including controlled studies, on stress-management courses for Australians is recommended, as a basis for the development of courses which serve the needs of groups that differ in age, health status, occupation, education, and ethnic origin.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1989

Cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between physical fitness and risk factors for coronary heart disease in men and women: "the Adelaide 1000".

Measurements of aerobic fitness, weight, blood pressure, and lipids were made in 1000 sedentary men and women entering a fitness programme, and were repeated 2 years later in 733 subjects. Cross-sectional analyses including (a) comparisons of CHD risk factors in subjects grouped as "low", "low/moderate", "moderate/high", and "high" fitness, and (b) multiple regression analyses of relationships between fitness and risk factors showed that fitter subjects had better risk profiles than less fit. Longitudinal analyses including (a) comparisons of risk factor changes in subjects grouped as fitness "losers", "stable", "small gain", and "large gain", and (b) multiple regression analyses of relationships between fitness change and risk factor changes showed that fitness change was largely unrelated to risk factor changes. The study supported the existence of beneficial associations between fitness and risk factors but not cause and effect relationships.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Musculoskeletal status of men and women who entered a fitness programme.

The musculoskeletal status at entry into a fitness programme and the incidence of injuries during the first four months of the programme were evaluated in 991 men and women who were aged 20-63 years. At entry, about half of the subjects reported having received treatment for musculoskeletal ailments previously, or that currently they were experiencing musculoskeletal pain and/or discomfort, and about one-third of the subjects reported one or more movement limitations. New injuries during the first four months of the programme were reported by 38% of subjects, with an average duration of impairment of 3.8 weeks, and 43% of those who were injured sought medical treatment. The most frequent type, location, and cause of injury were "joint sprains/strains" (66%), the lower leg (70%), and jogging (33%), respectively. Musculoskeletal problems (previous treatment, current pain or discomfort or movement limitations) in the leg did not predict leg injuries during the programme, but back problems did predict back injuries. Age, sex, body mass index, a parental history of musculoskeletal disease, a sporting history, and the frequency of vigorous exercise during the first four months did not predict injury. The study emphasized: first, the vulnerability of previously-sedentary persons to musculoskeletal injury and the consequent need for care in the management of fitness programmes; secondly, the need for the evaluation of such programmes if they are to have a rational rather than an intuitive basis; and thirdly, the need for epidemiological research on the musculoskeletal system as a basis for systematic efforts, partly through education and ergonomics, to reduce wear and tear on the musculoskeletal system.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Effects of physical activity on risk factors for coronary heart disease in previously sedentary women: a five-year longitudinal study.

Fitness, weight, blood-pressure, and lipids were measured in 290 women joining a fitness programme. Five years later, 110 (38%) had remained active, and the others had become sedentary again. The net effect of being active was to increase fitness by 18% and to reduce weight by 1.9 kg, diastolic blood pressure by 3 mmHg, and triglycerides by 0.15 mmol/L-1. After controlling for age, weight and fitness, physical activity accounted for 1% and 3% of the variance of changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure respectively, and was not associated with changes in lipids. Change in fitness accounted for only 1% of change in diastolic blood pressure. More 'active' women gave up smoking than 'inactive' (70% versus 10%). Hypertensive women were more sensitive to changes in weight and fitness than normotensive women. It was concluded that physical activity and change in fitness were only weakly related to changes in blood pressure and were unrelated to changes in lipids.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Nutritional profile of recruits to a fitness programme.

Examination of the dietary habits of a group of adults embarking on a two-year fitness programme (the "Adelaide 1000") showed that, although many of their dietary habits were more consistent with national dietary guidelines than those of a comparison community group, their overall intake of nutrients was similar. The major difference was a substantially higher rate of dietary supplementation with vitamin and mineral preparations in the fitness group. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to public understanding of dietary principles and to the provision of practical nutritional guidance in conjunction with fitness programmes.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Relationships between physical fitness and risk factors for coronary heart disease in men and women.

The aim of the study was to examine the cross-sectional relationships between physical fitness and risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD). Measurements were made of fitness (defined as predicted maximal oxygen uptake), blood pressure, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose in 1500 healthy men and women aged 20 to 65 years. After controlling for the effects of age, physique, smoking, alcohol use and stress, by multiple regression analyses, it was found that fitter men had lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides than less fit men, and fitter women had lower blood pressure than less fit women. However, these fitness/risk factor relationships were seen as weak trends, probably of minor clinical importance. It is emphasised that such cross-sectional data should not be interpreted as support for the popular claim that people who increase their fitness can expect to improve their CHD risk factor status.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Relationships between weight change and changes in blood pressure and serum lipids in men and women.

An examination was made of the relationships between weight change and changes in blood pressure and serum lipids over a five-year period in apparently healthy men and women not engaging in a systematic regime of diet and/or weight control. Weight change was positively correlated with systolic and diastolic blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides, though the correlation coefficients were small (0.11 to 0.28) and not statistically significant for systolic blood pressure and cholesterol for men, and triglycerides for women. After controlling for the effects of differences in age, weight, physical work capacity and initial values in risk factors, and for changes in physical work capacity, weight change in women was found to account independently for a proportion of the variance of changes in systolic blood pressure (3 per cent), diastolic blood pressure (6 per cent), and cholesterol (2 per cent); in men weight change was independently related only to change in diastolic blood pressure (4 per cent). Subjects with elevated blood pressure (diastolic greater than or equal to 95 mmHg) were apparently more sensitive to weight change than those with 'normal' blood pressure. It was concluded that in free-living populations the relationships between weight change and changes in blood pressure and lipids are not strong, and that the general value of weight control in this context may have been exaggerated.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

A pilot study of some associations between behavioural stressors and physiological processes in healthy men.

A study was made of the physiological effects of smoking, psychological stressors, heat, exercise, and fat ingestion on 12 healthy men. Repeated measurements were made of cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, enzyme, lipid, and other variables in all stressor situations. The main findings were that psychological stressors and exercise were associated with more and larger physiological changes than the other stressors, and widespread response differences in addition to those in lipids were identified between subgroups of seven normolipidaemic men and five hypertriglyceridaemic men.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗
PubMed1980

Long-term effects of physical training programme on risk factors for coronary heart disease in otherwise sedentary men.

Three hundred and seventy sedentary men aged 20-65 years enrolled in a physical training programme after a medical and fitness examination that included measurements of "classical" risk factors for coronary heart disease. Five years later re-examination showed (a) that on average the subjects had not changed significantly in weight, blood pressure, serum lipid concentrations, smoking habits, and physical working capacity; (b) that men who had remained active and therefore had a higher degree of fitness did not differ in risk factors from men who had returned to sedentary habits; and (c) that men who had improved substantially in fitness did not differ in risk factors from men whose fitness had not changed or had declined. Five years after the initial programme one-third of the men were continuing with regular vigorous exercise. These results do not support the view that classical risk factors for coronary heart disease improve with increased physical activity and fitness.

Adult↗