
Raffaele ScuratiUniversity of Milan | UNIMI · Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health
Raffaele Scurati
MSc
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70
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Introduction
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January 2004 - May 2021
Publications
Publications (70)
Background/Objectives: The educational system thinking approach (ST) takes a holistic vision of instructors/teachers and learners’ relationships, making sports pivotal for reflection on education. This study evaluated the efficacy of a multisport ST-based course on minirugby instructors’ teaching competence and children players’ motor conduct. Meth...
Background/Objectives: The concept of educational systems thinking shows the rugby educational system as a network of multiple interactive and interconnected elements. However, the frameworks presented in the literature for developing sports practice through an educational vision and multisport engagement do not always have direct transferability t...
Background:
This study investigates the psychophysical health implications of hybrid and on-site working modalities among desk workers. It focuses on how hybrid work, integrating remote and on-site elements, influences physical activity, efficiency, and overall health.
Methods:
The research involved 57 desk workers, evaluated using the Internati...
Individuals with Down Syndrome exhibit deficits in muscle strength and cardiovascular adaptation, which limit athletic performance. We compared a maximum-intensity 50 m front crawl test between competitive male swimmers with Down Syndrome (SDS; n = 11; 26.5 ± 5.6 years; m ± SD) and a control group of swimmers (CNT; n = 11; 27.1 ± 4.0 years) with si...
Workplaces cause employees to adopt sedentary behaviors for most of their daytime, negatively impacting psychophysical health. A new office concept (UP150) was designed to reduce sedentary behaviors at work through architectural changes, proactive technologies, and wellness coaches (education to active lifestyles). The present study examined the ef...
System Thinking is an actual construct supported by several scientific evidence that offer a perspective on how phenomena relate. Rhythm methodology, teaching-learning, and enjoyment in physical education are the main system elements we hypothesize interacting closely to determine direct or mediated effects on motor creativity and rhythmic percepti...
This study aimed to identify the relationship between dryland tests and swimming performance in elite Paralympic swimmers. Fifteen competitive swimmers (age: 27.4 ± 5.4 years, height: 1.70 ± 6.8 m, body mass: 67.9 ± 9.2 kg; 9 males, 6 females) performed a lat pull-down and a bench press incremental load test to determine maximum power (Pmax), the s...
Work and intellectually fatiguing environments can significantly influence the health of individuals, which is strictly bound to motor efficiency. In particular, desk workers and university students may have a sedentary lifestyle and a condition of mental fatigue caused by daily routine, which could impair motor efficiency. The assessment is a star...
Intense sports activities affect cognitive, perceptual, and physiological domains, possibly concurring in reducing pain perception and anxiety. Within a framework for a new socio-ecological narrative that considers opposition (such as fighting) and collaboration (cooperative learning) as carriers of self-control and pain perception inhibition, we i...
The present video reports the most recent findings of the development of a physical literacy interventions reporting template (PLIRT)
Carl, J., Barratt, J., Arbour-Nicitopoulos, K., Barnett, L.M., Dudley, D.A., Holler, P.,... Cairney, J. (2023). Development, explanation, and presentation of the Physical Literacy Interventions Reporting Template (P...
Background
The physical literacy (PL) concept integrates different personal (e.g., physical, cognitive, psychological/affective, social) determinants of physical activity and has received growing attention recently. Although practical efforts increasingly adopt PL as a guiding concept, latest evidence has shown that PL interventions often lack spec...
Motor creativity can be influenced by the specificity of the school–class environments (music-based education plans) and individual characteristics. This study aimed to investigate the effects of music oriented and conventional education plans on rhythmic perceptive capacity, motor creativity, and skill- and health-related fitness components in you...
Introduction
After COVID-19 restrictions, hybrid solutions were established that combined smart working and work in presence. Workplace conditions significantly impact employees' lives, particularly in terms of meeting their needs and promoting their wellbeing. Based on a socio-ecological and multilevel methodology, the UP150 concept (Proactive Off...
Long coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) is the designation given to a novel syndrome that develops within a few months after infection by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and that is presenting with increasing incidence because of the numerous cases of infection. Long COVID-19 is characterized by a sequela of clinical sym...
This group randomized control trial examined the dose-response effect of varied combinations of linear and nonlinear pedagogy (enriched physical education with specific program led by specialist vs. conventional physical education led by generalist) for improving first-grade children’s motor creativity, executive functions, self-efficacy, and learn...
This study aimed to investigate the effects of nonlinear and linear varied practice compared to a constant linear practice on inhibitory control and reaction time, which are capacities that involve cognition in preadolescents. Eighty-three participants in the 8th grade participated in the study. They were assigned to two experimental groups (varied...
The aim of this case series was to evaluate the effectiveness of a dry-land home-training program conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic period in Paralympic swimmers. Previous evidence showed the importance of muscular strength and power training for Paralympic swimmers due to the positive relationship between severity of impairment, swimming tech...
Physical activity (PA) is a major health factor and studies suggest workplaces could promote PA by modifying office design, motivational strategies and technology. The present study aims to evaluate the efficiency of UP150, a multifactorial workplace intervention for the improvement and maintenance of the level of physical fitness (PF) and wellbein...
Background:
Respiratory muscle training has been shown to provide positive effects for both health and performance purposes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a six-week period of nasal breathing on pulmonary function and cardio-respiratory fitness in young basketball players.
Methods:
Thirty-four, male, basketball players wer...
The circadian rhythm plays a fundamental role in regulating biological functions, including sleep-wake preference, body temperature, hormonal secretion, food intake, and cognitive and physical performance. Alterations in circadian rhythm can lead to chronic disease and impaired sleep. The circadian rhythmicity in human beings is represented by a co...
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between basic cognitive functions and sport-specific physical performance in young volleyball players. Forty-three female volleyball players (age 11.2 ± 0.8 years) were tested for cognitive performance by measuring simple reaction time (clinical reaction time), executive control (Flanker tas...
Teaching physical education requires competencies to conduct the classes and to assess the motor skills of practitioners. Specialists (physical education professionals) and generalists (primary school teachers) differently experienced motor tasks during their academic education. This study aimed to compare the teachers’ ability in assessing the chi...
The present study investigated the relationship between local fat percentage (SKfat) and muscle quality (MQ) estimated by a new hand-held electrical impedance myography (hEIM) device or derived from ultrasound and strength assessments. The right anterior thigh of 90 healthy participants (mean±SD; age=22.9±2.9 years; 46 men: BMI=23.9 ± 2.4 kgm-2 ; 4...
The passive drag (Dp) during swimming is affected by the swimmer’s morphology, body density and body position. We evaluated the relative contribution of morphology, body composition, and body position adjustments in the prediction of a swimmer’s Dp. This observational study examined a sample of 60 competitive swimmers (31 male and 29 female) with a...
Background: In physical activity, testing procedures generally require maximal efforts. They are not always administrable or appropriate (e.g., with beginners, elderly, or in school); therefore, alternative submaximal procedures might be more fitting. This study aimed to assess the criterion validity and reliability of submaximal tests based on per...
Circadian rhythms influence daily behavior, psychological and physiological functions, as well as physical performance. Three chronotypes are distinguished according to the preferences people typically display for activity at certain times of day: Morning, Neither, and Evening types (M-, N- and E-types). The chronotype changes with age: eveningness...
Problem statement: Different studies have reported on the epidemiology related to injuries resulting from falls, which are the most common causes of injury in Italy. The World Health Organization considers falls as the second leading cause of accidental or unintentional deaths worldwide. However, it has been demonstrated that the Safe Fall, Safe Sc...
Problem Statement: Technical swimming skills, the breaststroke in particular, are basic for a safe
aquatic literacy and drowning prevention. Learn-to-swim programs cope to several teaching constraints,
including providing adequate feedbacks to the learner to guarantee the best motor control and skills’ acquisition.
Recent technology makes mobile de...
The present study investigated the effects of in-season enhanced negative work-based training (ENT) vs weight training in the change of direction (COD), sprinting and jumping ability, muscle mass and strength in semi-professional soccer players. Forty male soccer players participated in the eight-week, 1 d/w intervention consisting of 48 squat repe...
Physical education (PE) researchers sustain that the teaching styles adopted by PE teachers play a key role in defining children’s positive experiences during lessons and have a relevant impact on their psychophysical health. However, a limited number of studies has examined the effect of teaching styles on these aspects. The aim of this study was...
Drag is the resistant force that opposes a swimmer displacing through water and significantly affects swimming performance. Drag experienced during active swimming is called active drag (Da), and its direct determination is still controversial. By contrast, drag experienced while gliding in a stable streamlined body position is defined as passive d...
In the past, the use of external fixation technique (FE) in children was limited, as the patient's compliance to the treatment was scarce due to an important visual impact for the little patient. With the evolution of the surgical approach and the technology of fixators, we have been able to considerably implement the treatment possibilities, thus...
Cartilage lesions still represent an unsolved problem: despite the efforts of the basic and translational research, the regeneration of this tissue is far from being reached (1-3). Articular cartilage lesions can be divided in two main groups: superficial or partial defects and full-thickness defects (4, 5). Partial lesions are not able to self-hea...
Background
One of the mechanisms responsible for enhancing muscular hypertrophy is the high metabolic stress associated with a reduced muscular oxygenation occurring during exercise, which can be achieved by reducing the speed of movement. Studies have tested that lowered muscle oxygenation artificially induced by an inflatable cuff, could provoke...
Data of muscle oxygenation (muscle), prefrontal cortex oxygenation (PFC), Number of repetitions, and RPE
Background:
This study investigated the differences in strength, technique and time performance in in-line skaters of three age categories during a 300 m trial. Possible correlations among these variables were also assessed.
Methods:
Thirty-six elite in-line skaters (Cadets, Juniors and Seniors, n=12 each; 14±1, 16±1, and 24±6 years of age, resp...
Umbilical cord (UC) may represent an attractive cell source for allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy. The aim of this in vitro study is to investigate the chondrogenic and osteogenic potential of UC-MSCs grown onto tridimensional scaffolds, to identify a possible clinical relevance for an allogeneic use in cartilage and bone reconstructiv...
This study evaluated a tendon substitute model. Tenocytes were isolated from pig Achilles tendon, seeded onto scaffolds (Opocrin 2%, Typeone 3% and Symatese 2%) and studied by histology, immunofluorescence for collagen type 1 and 3 and biochemical analysis to assess cellularity. The permeability of these compounds was evaluated in the presence or a...
The Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV), belonging to the paramixoviridae family, causes a serious infectious disease for birds, resulting in severe losses in the poultry industry every year. Haemagglutinin neuraminidase glycoprotein (HN) has been recognized as a key protein in the viral infection mechanism, and its inhibition represents an attractive ta...
Literature has pointed out physical and psychological benefits of water based exercises (WBEs) for the elderly; however, few studies have investigated how old adults perceive those activities. This study was aimed at exploring the elder’s perception of WBEs, which brings the old adult to apply for an aqua-gym course and to successfully continue it....
Strenuous exercise affects immune system and stimulates the synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin 6 (IL-6) and the anti-inflammatory cytokines, mainly interleukin 10 (IL-10). IL-6 and IL-10 fluctuations can influence sleep quality. Many genetic tracts influence the immune system response to exercise. The angiotensin-convert...
BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects on mood and physical efficiency of aerobic activity in water compared to aerobic activity of a corresponding type and intensity performed in a gym, in third age women. METHODS: Forty-five women (76.0 +/- 3.5 years old, 62.3 +/- 7.7 kg, 156.0 +/- 7.0 cm) were divided into three groups,...
To assess the effects of acute L-carnosine and β-alanine (Carn-BA) supplementation on isometric and dynamic tasks.
Twelve healthy participants performed knee extensors maximal voluntary contractions (MVC) and countermovement jumps (CMJ) before and after a fatiguing protocol (45s continuous CMJ). Isometric and dynamic tests were performed four hours...
The aim of this study was to observe the cardiovascular demands by monitoring the heart rate (HR) and the pacing strategy by evaluating the speed during a simulated cross-country skiing race. Eleven skiers (16.45 ± 1.67 yrs; 21.32 ± 2.03 kg m–2; 72.35 ± 4.69 mL min–1 kg–1) competed in a 10km event divided into four laps. The HR profile was classifi...
This study assessed how accurately professional swimmers can interpret instructions to swim “slow,” “moderate,” and “fast.” 8 distance swimmers (6 males, 2 females; M age = 19 yr., SD = 3) and 8 sprint swimmers (7 males, 1 female; M age = 18 yr., SD = 1) performed an all-out 50-m crawl stroke and three sets of 8 × 50-m crawl stroke trials interpret...
The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of prolonged sitting on the vertical jump of young basketball players. After a standard warm-up of 15 minutes, players from five basketball teams underwent countermovement jump (CMJ) and stiff leg (SL) tests (T1 time point). The tests were repeated (T2 time point) after the participants spent 20 mi...
Objective:
In selected hypertensive subjects, cardiovascular adaptation to warm environments may be inadequate or even harmful: heating associated to mudpack therapy may cause unexpected hypotension. How different antihypertensive drugs may affect the cardiovascular response to mudpack therapy is poorly studied.
Aims:
To evaluate the effects of...
Abstract High-level physical performance in rhythmic gymnastics is influenced by numerous skills and anthropometric factors. In order to understand if genetic predisposition could play a role to define the elite rhythmic gymnast phenotype, we analysed the frequency of common polymorphisms linked to genes correlated with body mass (ADRB2 and FTO), e...
Aim:
The aim of this paper was to evaluate the effects of a very long distance swimming task on psychological, biomechanical and physiological responses. Eight swimmers (age 21.0 ± 1.2 years; stature 1.80 ± 0.07 m; body mass 76.7 ± 11.0 kg; means ± SD) participated in a 25-km trial in a swimming pool.
Methods:
Before and immediately after the tr...
Abstract Exercise performed at a competitive level could deeply modify the immune system and the cytokine response of athletes. In this report, we demonstrated that young elite female artistic gymnasts (n = 16; age: 9-15 years) showed an increase of interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) mRNA expression in blood mononuclear c...
In breaststroke, at each arm action corresponds one leg kick; therefore, compared to the other strokes (front crawl, backstroke and butterfly), the contribution of the lower limbs is more important. However, it can be observed that the same distance can be covered at similar velocities with different stroke length (SL) and, as a consequence, stroke...
In front crawl, stroke length (SL) and stroke rate (SR) are two important technical determinants of performance. The relationship between these parameters has been investigated by several authors and two propulsion efficiency indices have been proposed to assess improvements of the front crawl stroke effectiveness in swimmers. The stroke index (SI)...
Questo studio fa parte di una serie di lavori che il La. S.A. (Laboratory of Sports Analysis) della Facoltà di Scienze Motorie, Università degli Studi di Milano sta conducendo sui metodi di apprendimento del nuoto nelle varie fasce d'età, con riferimento ad elementi importanit, quali ed esempio l'opportunità o meno di avvalersi di sussidi didattici...
In swimming competitions, a good maximal oxygen uptake ($
\dot V
$
\dot V
O2max) is well correlated with performance in mid and long distance events. Along $
\dot V
$
\dot V
O2max, oxygen uptake adaptation ($
\dot V
$
\dot V
O kinetic) and oxygen consumption at steady state ($
\dot V
$
\dot V
O2ss) are also important factors that influence the perf...
Kata, the artistic part of karate, requires motor control, rhythm and movement differentiation capacities. When performing
in a synchronised manner, kata team members have to make temporal and spatial adaptations to satisfy the requested task. It
is not clear whether these coordinative adaptations modify physical output such as heart rate (HR) and...
variations. METHODS Three athletes of the Italian national team, team kata world champions, performed the individual Gankaku kata at their maximum performance (Reference Trial = RT) and at some spatial and temporal variations: at 90% and 110% of the distance covered during the RT (maintaining the same RT duration) and at 110% and 120% of the RT tim...
Questo studio fa parte di una serie di lavori
che il La. S.A. (Laboratory of Sports Analysis)
della Facoltà di Scienze Motorie, Università
degli Studi di Milano sta conducendo sui
metodi di apprendimento del nuoto nelle varie
fasce d’età, con riferimento ad elementi
importanit, quali ed esempio l’opportunità
o meno di avvalersi di sussidi didattici...
METHODS 32 male subjects (mean±SD, age 10.5±0.5 years, height 143.2±6.6 cm, body mass 36.5±6.2 kg) and 17 fe- male subjects (mean±SD, age 10.6±0.5 years, height 144.0±8.5 cm, body mass 36.0±6.9 kg) performed a 100m butterfly stroke, according to the Cazorla's Natation-Eval test battery (1). Therefore following data were collected: i. Shoulder flexi...
13 matches of the Triveneto Inter-Regional Championship (-68 kgs black belt male senior) and of the Italian National Championship (-67 kgs black belt male senior) were video- recorded. Combats were then analysed and data were col- lected for action categories: performed and effective tac- tics. About technique categories we considered: kick to the...
AIMS The aim of this study was to compare Motor Imagery and Kunci Breathing Technique as methods to manage the pos- tural control in a typical martial arts test. METHODS Survey involved 3 male and 3 female groups of 5 subjects each. Subjects were tested before and after a specific training period of 6 weeks (Group C = control group, non- trained; G...