A lot of factors influence the caregivers' burden. It appears necessary to take into consideration the cultural, religious, and economic distinctiveness of the country in question.

Purpose. Relaxing in the athlete’s training process is underutilized. Relaxation techniques, however, should be taught from the very beginning of the footballer’s training career. The main aim of this study was to present the effect of progressive muscle relaxation on pressure pain threshold levels and the effectiveness of the footballer’s training. Methods. A sample of 32 football players participated in the therapeutic program consisting of 8 PMR sessions. Before and after applying a pressure therapy, the pain threshold in the lumbar region was measured by a dolorimeter and the Cooper test was carried out to determine the footballers’ level of endurance. Results. PMR training did not increase significantly the pain threshold level in the experimental group (p > 0.05), but it increased significantly the distance covered in the Cooper test (p = 0.04). Analysis of the Spearman rank correlation was also carried out (p = 0.81). Conclusions. PMR does not lower pain perception threshold. PMR therapy increases the distance measured by the Cooper test. In order to determine the role of PMR in injury prevention, further research is necessary.

The objective of the study was to examine the level of perceived stress among the final year students in the full-time Master’s programme at the Department of Physiotherapy of the University School of Physical Education in Wroclaw, and to identify the factors correlating with stress.The study involved 54 students. The participants were 23 to 28 years of age, 44 of them were women, and 10 men. The level of stress and related factors were evaluated using the Perceived Stress Questionnaire (KPS - Kwestionariusz Poczucia Stresu) created by Mieczysław Plopa and Ryszard Makarowski, and a short questionnaire prepared by the authors of the study, containing questions about the students’ age, gender, physical activity, financial situation, gainful employment, mode of studies, hometown, having a close friend or relative, plans for the future and satisfaction with the studies.Regular physical activity is a factor that positively affects the level of students’ perceived stress. A lower level of perceived stress was also associated with the respondents’ rating of their financial situation as good. The overall mean stress score obtained by the surveyed students is indicative of low stress severity. In the majority of cases, the respondents reported an average level of emotional strain and a low level of external and internal stress. The mean values of overall scores on the stress scale and its subscales were higher for women than for men. However, due to the size of the sample group, the differences cannot be seen as statistically significant.Regular physical activity and good financial situation impact on reducing the level of perceived stress.

As the choice of methodology varies significantly, it is difficult to attempt an objective comparison between different studies. There is a clear need for the normalisation of methods used to assess the degree of dementia and to assess postural stability among this group of people.