K-M Braumann

• Professor
• Hamburg University

This updated guideline replaces the “Guideline for the application of heart rate and heart rate variability in occupational medicine and occupational health science” first published in 2014. Based on the older version of the guideline, the authors have reviewed and evaluated the findings on the use of heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV...

Physical exercise has been shown to enhance memory and to increase neuroplasticity. Rodent studies have revealed modulating effects of signaling molecules of the immune system (cytokines) on hippocampal plasticity and memory. Acute and chronic exercise have been both found to alter the number and function of immune cells. Thus, physical exercise mi...

While obesity impairs health-related quality of life (HRQOL), lifestyle interventions targeting weight reduction have been effective in improving HRQOL. Therefore, we hypothesised that a meal replacement-based lifestyle intervention, which has been shown to successfully reduce weight, would also improve HRQOL more effectively than a lifestyle inter...

Lifestyle interventions including meal replacement are suitable for prevention and treatment of obesity and type-2-diabetes. Since leptin is involved in weight regulation, we hypothesised that a meal replacement-based lifestyle intervention would reduce leptin levels more effectively than lifestyle intervention alone. In the international, multicen...

Low-caloric formula diets can improve hemodynamic parameters of patients with type 2 diabetes. We, therefore, hypothesized that persons with overweight or obesity can benefit from a high-protein, low-glycemic but moderate-caloric formula diet. This post-hoc analysis of the Almased Concept against Overweight and Obesity and Related Health Risk- (ACO...

Due to increasing life expectancy, low-cost interventions to counteract age-related memory impairment have gained popularity. Physical activity has been shown to positively affect memory and hippocampal plasticity in rodents and humans. These effects have been proposed to be mediated by the release of neurotrophic factors. However, studies examinin...

Lifestyle interventions, including meal replacement, are effective in the prevention and treatment of type-2-diabetes and obesity. Since insulin is the key weight regulator, we hypothesised that the addition of meal replacement to a lifestyle intervention reduces insulin levels more effectively than lifestyle intervention alone. In the internationa...

As formula diets have demonstrated to be effective in reducing weight, we hypothesised that in patients with overweight or obesity and accompanied cardiovascular risk factors, combining a liquid formula diet with a lifestyle intervention is superior in reducing weight and improving cardiovascular risk factors than lifestyle intervention alone. In t...

Background Identifying factors that contribute to the occurrence of injury is an important step in designing training programs to minimize the risk of injury. However, despite high injury rates, variables contributing to injury in field hockey players remain relatively unexplored. Purpose To identify factors that may predict injury in professional...

Although meal replacement can lead to weight reduction, there is uncertainty whether this dietary approach implemented into a lifestyle programme can improve long-term dietary intake. In this subanalysis of the Almased Concept against Overweight and Obesity and Related Health Risk (ACOORH) study (n = 463), participants with metabolic risk factors w...

Abilities such as peripheral reaction are of special importance in soccer. Whether these abilities can be improved by sport-specific on-field interventions remains unclear. The aim of the present controlled trial was to investigate the effect of a soccer-specific perceptual-cognitive on-field training on peripheral reaction of highly talented socce...

Lifestyle interventions have been shown to reverse hyperglycemia to normoglycemia. However, these effects are not long-lasting and are accompanied with high dropout rates. As formula diets have been shown to be simple in usage and effective in improving glycemic control, we hypothesised that adding a low-carbohydrate and energy deficit formula diet...

Background Although there is mounting evidence on sex-linked differences in paraspinal muscle function, it is unknown whether sex-based variations in mechanical and contractile characteristics of the lumbar erector spinae (LES) can be monitored noninvasively in healthy participants at rest using tensiomyography (TMG). Hypothesis Sex-specific effec...

Various studies suggest the importance of peripheral vision (PV) in sports. Computer-based test systems provide objective methods to measure PV. Nevertheless, the reliability and training effects are not clarified in detail. The purpose of this investigation was to present a short narrative non-systematic review on computer-based PV tests and to de...

Lifestyle interventions have shown to reverse hyperglycemia to normoglycemia. However, most interventions are cost-intensive. Formula diets have shown to improve glycemic control and be cost-effective. We, therefore, hypothesized that adding a low-carbohydrate formula diet to a low-intense lifestyle intervention is superior in reversing prediabetes...

Tensiomyography™ (TMG) is a non-invasive method to monitor skeletal muscle mechanical characteristics. This systematic review and meta-analysis reports on diagnostic accuracy, validity, and reliability of TMG (maximal radial displacement [Dm], contraction time [Tc], delay time [Td], and velocity of contraction [Vc]) to assess exercise-induced fatig...

The study assessed if the maximal lactate steady state (MLSS) may be determined by HRV in overweight and obese individuals. Fourteen obese (OB) and 14 overweight (OW) participants performed an incremental exercise test and several constant-load tests on a bicycle ergometer to determine the MLSS. HRV was analysed by using time domain and non-linear...

Background & Aim: Little is known about functional and motor deficits in male soccer players aged 9-13 and the impact they have on sports injuries and the prevention thereof. Hence, this study assesses functional and motor deficits in the aforementioned population and investigates the effects of an individualized training intervention on functional...

Foam rolling is widely used as a regeneration tool. Tissue tone alterations appear to be reasonable as underlying mechanism and could be detected using myotonometry. Twenty healthy volunteers participated in a study design with repeated measurements. Using myotonometry, tissue tone properties were assessed for both limbs directly before and after a...

A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has not been fixed in the paper.

In the analysis of human walking, the assessment of local dynamic stability (LDS) has been widely used to determine gait stability. To extend the concepts of LDS to the analysis of running biomechanics, this study aimed to compare LDS during exhaustive running between competitive and recreational runners. Fifteen recreational and fifteen competitiv...

Various studies suggest the importance of sport-specific cognitive and perceptual abilities in soccer. However, the role of general perceptual-cognitive abilities and the relation of age respective to position have not been clarified for soccer in detail. Therefore, it was the objective of the present study to determine the relation of age and posi...

Purpose: Tensiomyography™ (TMG) and MyotonPRO® (MMT) are two non-invasive devices for monitoring muscle contractile and mechanical characteristics. This study aimed to evaluate the test-retest reliability of TMG and MMT parameters for measuring (TMG:) muscle displacement (Dm), contraction time (Tc), and velocity (Vc) and (MMT:) frequency (F), stif...

Objectives To determine the incidence and characteristics of hockey (‘field hockey’) injuries over the course of one outdoor and indoor season. Comparisons of female versus male players, outdoor versus indoor season and match versus practice were performed. Methods Female and male teams of the first, second, third, regional and youth divisions wer...

Aim. Breast cancer and its treatments lead to cancer related fatigue and upper limb disabilities. On the other hand, resistance training has positive benefits for breast cancer survivors. Thus, the aim of present study was to clarify the effect of resistance training with Thera – Band on CRF and upper limb disabilities in breast cancer survivors. M...

Objectives: Ongoing debates about benefits and risks of barefoot- and minimally-shod running have, to date, revealed no conclusive findings for long-term effects on physical performance. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an 8-week transition to minimalist footwear (MFW) on running economy (RE). Design: Randomised controlled...

Context: Although increasingly used for therapeutic treatment only limited evidence exists regarding the effects of kinesio taping on patients with knee osteoarthritis. Objective: To determine the effects of kinesio taping on pain, function, gait and neuromuscular control concerning patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). Design: Randomized sh...

Die Relevanz neuer Forschungsansätze für das Beanspruchungs‐ und Regenerationsmanagement im Leistungssport ist unbestritten. In der dritten Stufe des BISp‐geförderten REGman‐Projekts wird aktuell der Praxistransfer von laborexperimentellen Befunden in das Feld des Leistungssports bearbeitet. Neben subjektiven Erholungs‐Erschöpfungskennwerten wird...

Effects of early and permanent footwear use are not well understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of habituation to footwear on foot strike patterns of children and adolescents. Healthy habitually barefoot and shod participants (aged 6–18 years) from South Africa (n = 288) and Germany (n = 390) performed multiple 20-m joggin...

The development of the human foot is crucial for motor learning in children and adolescents as it ensures the basic requirements for bipedal locomotion and stable standing. Although there is an ongoing debate of the advantages and disadvantages of early and permanent footwear use, the influence of regular barefootness on foot characteristics in dif...

Foam rolling (FR) has become a widely-used exercise concept in order to provide muscle restoration. Neurophysiological self-organization processes are considered to explain probable muscle tone modulations. As muscle tone alterations after strength training can be demonstrated using a novel technique (tensiomyography), FR-induced alterations may al...

Physical exercise has been shown to improve cognitive functions. However, it is still unknown which type of exercise affects cognition. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that a demanding balance training program improves memory and spatial cognition. Forty healthy participants aged 19–65 years were randomly assigned to either a balance...

Background: The measurement of the medial longitudinal foot arch in children is a controversial topic, as there are many different methods without a definite gold-standard. The purpose of this study was to 1) investigate intra-day- and inter-rater-reliability regarding dynamic arch index and static arch height, 2) to explore the correlation betwee...

While recent research debates the potential benefits and risks of barefoot and simulated barefoot running, the long-term effects on biomechanical and physiological parameters remain unclear. PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of transitioning from traditional cushioned (CF) to minimalist footwear (MF) on running economy (RE) in recreational runner...

Introduction: Barefoot locomotion is widely believed to be beneficial for motor development and biomechanics but are implied to be responsible for foot pathologies and running-related injuries. While most of available studies focused on acute effects of barefoot running and walking little is known regarding the effects of long-term barefoot vs. sh...

Poster presented at the 25th ESMAC Annual Meeting in Seville, Spain

Background Barefoot locomotion has evoked an increasing scientific interest with a controversial debate about benefits and limitations of barefoot and simulated barefoot walking and running. While most current knowledge comes from cross sectional laboratory studies, the evolutionary perspective suggests the importance of investigating the long-term...

Introduction: Several different measurements of the foot arch currently exist without a definite gold standard [1]. Measurements can be divided into static and dynamic methods and have varying strengths and limitations, such as duration, costs, radiation and examiner-dependence. For a rapid and objective assessment of the foot morphology, the Baref...

Introduction Little is known about the differences of long-term habitual barefoot (HB) and shod (HS) locomotion. The aim of this study was to systematically review the literature for comparisons of HB and HS populations, and to synthesize the effects of HB locomotion on performance, biomechanics, pathologies and the foot. Methods Following the PRIS...

Background Deficits in muscular function may be due to connective tissue properties, if so called fascia ‘cross-links’ restrict fibre mobility. Objectives This pilot study aimed at investigating immediate effects on spinal alignment after a ‘self-myofascial release’ intervention with the ‘Blackroll®’ device in pain-free volunteers. Methods Twelve p...

Regular physical exercise can positively influence cardiac function; however, investigations have shown an increase of myocardial damage biomarkers after acute prolonged endurance exercises. We investigated the effect of repeated sprint vs. moderate long duration exercise on markers of myocardial necrosis, as well as cardiac dimensions and function...

Korperliche Inaktivitat ist ein bedeutsamer Morbiditats- und Mortalitatsfaktor. Regelmasige korperliche Aktivitat und Sport haben hingegen einen praventiven und therapeutischen Effekt auf eine Vielzahl von Erkrankungen, darunter auch etliche neurologische. Arztliche Motivation zur Steigerung der korperlichen und sportlichen Aktivitat und ggf. der A...

Despite various research approaches, there is still conflicting evidence as to the worthiness of injury prediction tools in football. This study was aiming at investigating correlations between injuries of amateur male football players and the results of a Functional Movement Screen FMS). Using an observational design, ten amateur teams of the fift...

The authors of this paper—who are the current Presidents of the German Association of Sports Science and the German Society for Sports Medicine and Prevention—have witnessed developments in high performance sports for many years and are well acquainted with its history. For years, they have learned from countless discussions with trainers, sports o...

Der deutsche Sport befindet sich in einer Krise: Obwohl jährlich über 250 Mio. Euro in den Leistungssport fließen, werdendie erwarteten Erfolge immer weniger. Zunehmend wird von Seiten der Politik die fehlende Effizienz der eingesetzten Mittel moniert, zuletzt von Innenminister de Maizière. Auch der Bundesrechnungshof hat Ende 2014 eine fehlende Tr...

Purpose As reliability of raster stereography was proved only for sagittal plane parameters with repeated measures on the same day, the present study was aiming at investigating variability and reliability of back shape reconstruction for all dimensions (sagittal, frontal, transversal) and for different intervals. Methods For a sample of 20 heal...

Der FMS, eine sportmotorische Testbatterie zur Überprüfung von Beinachsenstabilität, Beweglichkeit und Rumpfstabilität, wurde im amerikanischen College Football als hilfreiches Instrument in der Verletzungsprognostik qualifiziert (91% Spezifität für Cut-Off Score <15Pkt.). Das Testinstrument war reliabel (Gesamtscore ICC=0,92) und Übertragungen auf...

Hintergrund Bei Rückenbeschwerden ist eine ergänzende Funktionsdiagnostik hilfreich zur Ableitung bewegungstherapeutischer Ziele und Inhalte, wie Mobilisierung und Kräftigung definierter Muskelfunktionsketten und zur Qualitätssicherung im Therapiemonitoring. Referenzdaten beschwerdefreier Personen können hilfreich sein zur Erstellung von Funktions...

Problemstellung: Obwohl junge Spielsportler einem erhöhten Risiko für Sprunggelenksverletzungen unterliegen, existieren bisher keine Daten zur Inzidenz und zu umgesetzten Präventionsstrategien im Nachwuchsbasketball. Ziel der Studie war die Erfassung von Sprunggelenksverletzungen sowie der Anwendung verletzungspräventiver Maßnahmen in den höchsten...

Objective: Physical exercise has been linked to higher cognitive functioning and enhanced brain plasticity in aging humans. The most consistent positive effects have been reported for executive functions associated with frontal brain regions. In rodents, however, running has been shown to induce functional and structural changes in the hippocampus,...

Positionsspezifische Orientierungsdaten liegen bislang nur für Ausdauerkennziffern vor (Di Salvo, 2007), obwohl seit einigen Jahren auf unterschiedliche Positionsanforderungsprofile auch für Schnelligkeits- und Kraftkennwerte hingewiesen wird (Gil et al., 2007).

Chronisch unspezifische Ruckenbeschwerden (cLBP) sollten differenzialdiagnostisch abgegrenzt werden von spezifischen, sowie akuten und subakuten unspezifischen Beschwerdebildern, sodass eine evidenzbasierte Behandlung (neuromuskulare Rekonditionierung, Regulation des Schmerzgedachtnisses, psychosoziale Coping-Strategien) initiiert werden kann. Die...

The aims of the present study were to investigate the effects of IT on lung function power (P) and oxygen uptake (VO2) at peak performance (peak) and ventilatory anaerobic threshold (VAT) in CF patients who were unable to participate in a standard exercise program (SEP) and to compare these IT responses with corresponding effects in CF patients per...

The aim of this study was to assess if the frequency of injuries can be reduced or even eliminated by employing a specific injury prevention and reduction training program. In a previously conducted pilot study with a group of professional soccer players we were able to determine that employment of an injury prevention training program resulted in...

Verschiedene Arbeitsgruppen wie, das „FIFA Medical Assessment and Re-search Center“ sowie das „Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center“ , haben sich mit Häufigkeiten und Ursachen von Verletzungen im Fußball beschäftigt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die häufigsten Verletzungen im Fußball an den unteren Extremitäten auftreten. Dies ist mit hohen Kosten für...

Hintergrund Die sagittale Ausrichtung der Wirbelsäule hängt mit zahlreichen Pathologien wie Bandscheibendegenerationen und Rückenschmerzen zusammen. Auswirkungen von spinalen Manipulationen („high velocity low amplitude“) auf die sagittale Ausrichtung der Wirbelsäule sind bislang nicht bekannt. Probanden und Methoden Im Rahmen dieser Pilotstudie w...

Experten gehen davon aus, dass im deutschen Profifußball seit den neunziger Jahren ein deutlicher Anstieg des Leistungsniveaus stattgefunden hat. So finden sich Werte für die Ausdauerleistungsfähigkeit der deutschen Nationalmannschaft von damals heute bereits schon in der Regionalliga. Dagegen wird das Niveau in der Sprintleistung erst in der 1. Bu...

Physical exercise has been linked to higher cognitive functioning and enhanced brain plasticity in aging humans. The most consistent positive effects have been reported for executive functions associated with frontal brain regions. In rodents, however, running has been shown to induce functional and structural changes in the hippocampus, a brain re...

Several clinical studies suggest antidepressive and anxiolytic effects of regular endurance training. The mechanisms by which exercise exerts these effects are still unclear. It was hypothesized that athletes might show a diminished reaction to psychosocial stress and noradrenergic stimulation. 12 male athletes and 12 healthy untrained male control...

The aim of our study was to evaluate the responses to an exercise programme with respect to initial fitness in subjects with cystic fibrosis (CF). 72 subjects (42 female) aged 10–43 yrs (forced expiratory volume in 1 s of 62.0±26.7% predicted) were included. Participants were divided into three groups based on peak oxygen uptake expressed as % pred...

Since physical exercise programs have the potential to help cancer patients regain physical fitness and may exert a range of positive consequences for recovery and psychological well-being, the impact of a physical exercise program was investigated in this prospective study. Women with primary nonmetastatic breast cancer after a minimum 4-week peri...

To investigate the adaptive responses of an in-patient exercise program in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and evaluate the effects of sex. In total, 158 female and 186 male subjects with CF (age, 12 to 43 years) were studied during a 6-week rehabilitation course. A maximal incremental cycling test was used to determine exercise capacity and res...

Es wird aus Sicht der Sportmedizin Stellung genommen aus Anlass der Veröffentlichung einiger Ergebnissen der Studie Doping in Deutschland von 1950 bis heute unter historisch-soziologischer Perspektive im Kontext ethischer Legitimation. Die Stellungnahme ist von den Mitgliedern des Wissenschaftsrats der DGSP unter Beteiligung von weiteren Hochschull...

Einleitung: Körperliche Aktivität ist ein prädominanter Stimulus für bronchiale Obstruktion bei Kindern mit Asthma. Deshalb haben Ärzte, Lehrer und Eltern immer noch eine negative Haltung gegenüber der Teilnahme asthmakranker Kinder am Schulsport. Wir untersuchten die Teilnahme asthmakranker Jungen und Mädchen am Schulsport in Hamburg. Methodik: 25...

The aim of the present study was to assess the motor performance in preschool children with a reliable and valid test battery developed to identify motor dysfunction and normal motor development in children aged from 4 to 6 years. Several aspects of motor performance were examined in 29 preschool children with cystic fibrosis (CF) age range 4-6 yea...