Among patients with septic shock undergoing mechanical ventilation, a continuous infusion of hydrocortisone did not result in lower 90-day mortality than placebo. (Funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia and others; ADRENAL ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01448109 .).

The sport of basketball exposes athletes to frequent high intensity movements including sprinting, jumping, accelerations, decelerations and changes of direction during training and competition which can lead to acute and accumulated chronic fatigue. Fatigue may affect the ability of the athlete to perform over the course of a lengthy season. The ability of practitioners to quantify the workload and subsequent fatigue in basketball athletes in order to monitor and manage fatigue levels may be beneficial in maintaining high levels of performance and preventing unfavorable physical and physiological training adaptations. There is currently limited research quantifying training or competition workload outside of time motion analysis in basketball. In addition, systematic research investigating methods to monitor and manage athlete fatigue in basketball throughout a season is scarce. To effectively optimize and maintain peak training and playing performance throughout a basketball season, potential workload and fatigue monitoring strategies need to be discussed.

This study does not support a beneficial role of continuing preexisting statin therapy on sepsis and inflammatory parameters. Cessation of established statin therapy was not associated with an inflammatory rebound. Clinical trial registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN 12605000756628).

Hopper, A, Haff, EE, Barley, OR, Joyce, C, Lloyd, RS, and Haff, GG. Neuromuscular training improves movement competency and physical performance measures in 11-13-year-old female netball athletes. J Strength Cond Res 31(5): 1165-1176, 2017-The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a neuromuscular training (NMT) program on movement competency and measures of physical performance in youth female netball players. It was hypothesized that significant improvements would be found in movement competency and physical performance measures after the intervention. Twenty-three junior female netball players (age, 12.17 6 0.94 years; height, 1.63 6 0.08 m; weight, 51.81 6 8.45 kg) completed a test battery before and after a 6-week training intervention. Thirteen of these athletes underwent 6 weeks of NMT, which incorporated plyometrics and resistance training. Trained athletes showed significant improvements in 20-m sprint time, 505 agility time, countermovement jump height, and peak power (p # 0.05, g . 0.8). In addition, trained athletes significantly improved their score in the Netball Movement Screening Tool (NMST) (p , 0.05, g . 21.30); while the athletes also demonstrated increased reach in the anterior and posteromedial directions for the right leg and left leg, and in the posterolateral direction for the left leg only in the Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) (p , 0.05, g . 20.03). Control subjects did not exhibit any significant changes during the 6-week period. Significant negative correlations were found between improved score on the NMST and decreased 5-, 10-, and 20-m sprint time, and 505 change of direction time (r . 0.4, p # 0.05). Results of the study affirm the hypothesis that a 6-week NMT intervention can improve performance and movement competency in youth netball players.

Purpose: To confirm the effect of maturational differences on anthropometric and physical testing and explore the effect of maturation on technical skill and coaches' perceptions of skill in adolescent Australian footballers. Methods: Athletes were recruited from a semi-elite under 16 competition (n = 94, age 15.7 ± 0.3 years) and completed anthropometric, physical, and technical skill tests. Coaches from each team provided subjective ratings of athletes' technical skills. Maturation groups were derived from years from peak height velocity estimates, with classifications either later, average or earlier maturing. Results: Effect size comparisons revealed very large to moderate effects between groups for anthropometric measures and performance in sprint and jump tasks. Small to moderate effects were reported between groups for coaches' perceptions of skill, with the earlier maturing group perceived to have better overall technical skills, marking and ball winning abilities. Small to trivial effects were reported for performance in the technical skill tests. Conclusions: Despite no differences in skill tests, earlier maturing athletes may be afforded significant selection and competition advantages due to advanced physical capacities and coaches' perceptions of skill.