Food strategies are currently used to improve inflammation and oxidative stress conditions in chronic pain which contributes to a better quality of life for patients. The main purpose of this systematic review is to analyze the effectiveness of different dietary strategies as part of the treatment plan for patients suffering from chronic pain and decreased health. PubMed, Web of Science, ProQuest, Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Cambridge Core, and Oxford Academy databases were used to review and to appraise the literature. Randomized clinical trials (RCT), observational studies, and systematic reviews published within the last 6 years were included. The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale, the PEDro Internal Validity (PVI), the Standard Quality Assessment Criteria for Evaluating Primary Research Papers from a variety of fields (QUALSYT), and the Quality Assessment Tool of Systematic Reviews scale were used to evaluate the risk of bias of the included studies. A total of 16 articles were included, of which 11 were RCTs and 5 were observational studies. Six of them showed an improvement in pain assessment, while two studies showed the opposite. Inflammation was shown to be decreased in four studies, while one did not show a decrease. The quality of life was shown to have improved in five studies. All of the selected studies obtained good methodological quality in their assessment scales. In the PVI, one RCT showed good internal validity, five RCTs showed moderate internal quality, while five of them were limited. Current research shows that consensus on the effects of an IF diet on pain improvement, in either the short or the long term, is lacking. A caloric restriction diet may be a good long term treatment option for people suffering from pain. Time restricted food and ketogenic diets may improve the quality of life in chronic conditions. However, more studies analyzing the effects of different nutritional strategies, not only in isolation but in combination with other therapies in the short and the long term, are needed.

Evidence shows that the use of food strategies can impact health, but a clear consensus about how the effects of different food strategies impact improvement in the athlete’s performance and health remain unclear. This study evaluated how food strategies, specifically intermittent fasting and a ketogenic diet affect health and performance in healthy athletes. Study selection for this review was based on clinical trial studies analyzing changes in performance and health in athletes. The Pubmed, Web of Science, PEDro, Dialnet, Scopus, CINAHL, ProQuest, Medline and Cochrane databases were searched. The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale, PEDro Internal Validity Scale (IVS) and Standard Quality Assessment Criteria for Evaluating Primary Research Papers from a variety of fields (QUALSYT) checklists were used to evaluate the risk of bias of the included studies. Articles were selected based on criteria concerning the effectiveness of nutritional strategies on athletes’ performance; articles should be randomized clinical trials (RCTs) or uncontrolled clinical trials; they should be human studies and they should have been published less than 7 years ago. A total of 15 articles were evaluated, 8 randomised clinical trials and 7 non-randomized clinical studies, with 411 participants who satisfied our inclusion criteria and were included in this review. The results of the study showed intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding as strategies that produce health benefits. On the other hand, the ketogenic diet did not reach an appropriate consensus. The articles presented a medium level of methodological quality in the PEDro scale, low quality in IVS scale and high quality in QUALSYT scale. Despite the lack of studies analyzing changes in the performance and health of athletes after the use of different nutritional strategies, intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding should be considered since they seem to be effective, and further studies are necessary.

The main objective of this literature review was to analyze the efficacy of (PBM) therapy application on subjects with chronic pain and inflammation, and furthermore, to evaluate the methodological quality of the collected literature. The search was conducted using five databases: PubMed, ProQuest, Scopus, Web of Science, and PEDro. The keywords “low level laser therapy”, “chronic pain”, and “inflammation” provided the selection of RCTs that were published within the last 5 years, conducted in humans, and written in English. The PEDro Internal Validity Scale (IVS) checklist was used to evaluate the risk of bias in the included studies. A total of 11 articles were selected, all of them RCTs. Of the articles, five showed that PBM positively influences chronic pain, while another showed the same but only in the short term. In two other articles, the patient’s inflammation improved markedly. In one article there was no improvement in chronic pain and in another, there was no improvement in inflammation. Four articles demonstrated that PBM is beneficial in acute pain. Furthermore, six studies were given an “excellent” score and the remaining five a “good” score based on the IVS. Photobiomodulation has beneficial effects on chronic pain and inflammation, although more research needs to be completed in this line for this to be clarified as the existence of RCTs on this subject is limited.

The main goal of this study is to analyze photobiomodulation therapy’s effectiveness on improving sports practice. Secondarily, the included studies were methodologically analyzed to verify their quality. A review and appraisal of literature found in Web of Science, ProQuest and Scopus databases was carried out. To evaluate the risk of bias of the included studies. The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale and PEDro Internal Validity Scale (IVS) checklists were used. The included randomized clinical trials were in English, conducted on humans and published since 2016. A total of 15 randomized clinical trials were included, 4 of which found an improvement in oxygen volume after an aerobic stress test, while 2 showed no change. Muscle damage decreased in five studies, however, in two of them muscle damage did not change. Blood lactate concentration decreased in two of the studies, while in three of them there was no difference. Muscle soreness was lower in three studies, however, in four of the articles no change was demonstrated. All selected studies were of good methodological quality. On the IVS, six RCTs had a high internal quality and nine of them moderate. Photobiomodulation therapy has a positive effect on sports performance. Scientific studies on the subject are limited and more research in this line is needed.

Purpose. This study was aimed at verifying both the intraobserver and interobserver reliability of measuring plantar fascia stiffness for a given image in healthy active adults. Methodology. This study is reported following the Guidelines of Reporting Reliability and Agreement Studies. A total of 20 plantar fascia from healthy volunteers were analyzed. The thickness of the plantar fascia was measured vertically from the anterior edge of the inferior calcaneal border to the inferior border of the plantar fascia and the ultrasound elastography measurement was taken at the calcaneal insertion of the plantar fascia with the region of interest one centimeter away from the insertion. Results. The ultrasound strain elastography measurements: the right intraobserver 1 showed an ICC value of 0.9 and the left intraobserver 1 showed an ICC value of 0.78, while the right intraobserver 2 showed an ICC value of 0.91 and the left intraobserver 2 showed an ICC value of 0.83. Interobserver measurements showed excellent reliability with a right ICC value of 0.8 and a left ICC value of 0.9 for the plantar fascia thickness measurements. Discussion. The results of this study showed a strong correlation between left and right plantar fascia thickness. The intraobserver reliability was excellent for both plantar fascia ultrasound strain elastography and thickness measurements, with interobserver measurements showing excellent reliability.