Background The effectiveness of Problem Based Learning (PBL) in physiotherapy education is not clearly studied. This systematic review was to determine the effectiveness of PBL compared to traditional methods (TM) or using other methods. Methodology PubMed, Pedro, Science direct, and Google Scholar Databases were searched on 11 January 2022 for randomized controlled trials, Non-randomized control trials, Quasi-experimental trials, before and after study design and cohort studies published in English from 2000 to 2022. Two reviewers conducted screening, eligibility assessment, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment. A narrative synthesis of outcomes is presented, Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Review was used to report the review. Meta-analysis was not performed due to the heterogeneity of studies. This protocol was registered in Prospero (CRD 42022301693). Results The primary search strategy identified 2826 potentially relevant articles, of which 1666 remained after removing duplicates. After title and abstract screening 22 potentially eligible studies were identified, 2 of those papers met all the predefined eligibility criteria. The total population size is 291. The results indicate that PBL was effective compared to the TM in terms of promoting early Evidence Based Practice (EBP); PBL facilitates learning strategies and study preference was high for PBL in comparison to TM. Conclusion PBL is effective in developing different competencies, especially promoting early EBP, in physiotherapy undergraduates and is reported as a preferred method compared to TM. However, there is a lack of evidence to confirm this finding. Research studies with high methodological quality need to be conducted in future.

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Background and ObjectivesPhysical activity has a great influence on children's health and cognition. Working memory, a key aspect of cognitive function, is heavily implicated in classroom activities. As cognitive function improves in younger ages, identifying a relationship between physical activity and working memory would be beneficial to the child population. The objective of the study was to describe physical activity level and working memory capacity and to determine their relationship in 10-11-year-old children. Methods A cross sectional study was done involving 180 (90 boys) 10-11-year-old children randomly selected from six schools in Colombo, Sri Lanka. A physical activity questionnaire for children (PAQ-C) was used to assess the physical activity level. A wall mounted stadiometer and an electronic weighing scale were used to assess height and weight. To assess verbal and nonverbal components of working memory, the digit span test (forward and backward) and Corsi block tapping test (forward and backward) were used. Ethics clearance was obtained from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo. Data was analyzed using the independent sample t test, Pearson correlation test and one way ANOVA test on SPSS version 25. Results Mean PAQ-C score and mean scores for digit span tests and Corsi block tapping forward test were significantly higher in boys compared to girls (p<0.05). Positive correlations were found between physical activity level and digit span forward test (r=0.49; p<0.01), Corsi block tapping forward test (r = 0.31; p<0.01) and Corsi block tapping backward test (r=0.52; p<001). Conclusions Increased physical activity levels lead to increase in working memory capacity. Sex difference was observed in physical activity level and working memory capacity where boys outperformed girls.

Background: COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdown could prevent students from achieving the recommended levels of physical activity due to home confinement and it also could lead to changes in lifestyle related behaviour. University students are already known as a risk group for physical inactivity. Thus, the aim of this study was to identify physical activity levels and lifestyle changes during COVID-19 pandemic among undergraduate medical and physiotherapy students of University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. Methods: A web-based survey was used, which consisted of questions from short form of International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ - SF) and lifestyle related behaviour questionnaire. Results: A total of 349 participants (age= 22.59±1.96, n =141; 40.4 % males and n=208; 59.6 % females) completed the questionnaire. According to the IPAQ categorical score 49.9% were physically inactive and the mean weekly total metabolic equivalent (MET) minutes of the population was 1018.20±1271.13. A significant increase in sitting and screen time during the COVID-19 pandemic were found in 68.5 % of participants. The mean sitting time and screen time were 7.50±5.21 and 7.09±3.43 hours per day. A slight increase in stress and anxiety levels and sleeping hours were reported by 32.4 % and 41.5% of participants respectively while 31.5 % reported a slight decrease in consumption of junk food. Conclusion: An overall increase in physical inactivity such as reduced exercises, increased sitting and screen time were observed among study participants. Promotional educational strategies should include the development and implementation of interventions that promote active lifestyle behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Keywords: Physical activity, COVID-19, lockdown, lifestyle, Sri Lanka, undergraduates.