- 2021 Society for Endocrinology Grant
We were awarded £9992 from the Society for Endocrinology towards research assessing the influence of cold application upon markers of bone health. Traditionally cold application is used as an analgesic for skeletal/muscular associated pains, however, research in animals has shown regular cold exposure to be detrimental to bone health. Our investigation will look to assess the influence of acute and chronic cold exposure, via cold water immersion, upon local and systemic markers of bone health in healthy humans.
- 2021 Prince Faisal Bin Fahad Award
Dr Matthew Reeves and colleagues from UCLan were awarded £80,000 in the inaugural Prince Faisal Bin Fahad award for sports research to examine the talent identification and development in soccer. The programme of research will examine multiple facets of the talent pathway in soccer in Saudi Arabia and make a series of recommendations to enhance their future soccer aspirations.
- 2021 Prince Faisal Bin Fahad Award
Dr Jonathan Sinclair, Dr Robert Allan and colleagues were also awarded £115,000 to examine the effects of a home-based physical activity program on blood biomarkers and health-related quality of life in Saudi Arabian type-2 diabetes mellitus patients. The WHO ranks Saudi Arabia as having the 7th highest rate of type-2 diabetes in the world and importantly, physical activity has been shown to improve disease symptoms and overall health in patients with type-2 diabetes. Find out more about this project.
- 2021 Morris Animal Foundation Fellowship Training Grant
We were awarded $101,695 USD from Morris Animal Foundation for a research fellowship to measure and compare muscle function in association with the resulting limb and upper body movements during normal equine locomotion and during unilateral forelimb and hindlimb lameness. A lame horse attempts to relieve pain in the affected limb by redistributing the weight-bearing responsibility from the painful limb onto the non-lame or less lame limbs. This mechanism is assumed to require adaptations in muscle contraction and coordination, but these neuromuscular changes have yet to be measured. Our study will use a non-invasive technique called surface electromyography (EMG) to measure and compare muscle function during non-lame and unilateral lameness conditions in horses. For more information, please see MAF and Delsys.
- 2021 Military Children’s Voices: Equine Assisted Coaching
A partnership including UCLan College for Military Veterans, TFB Coaching and Eccleston Equestrian Centre received £5,000 of funding from the Armed Forces Covenant . The purpose of this study is to understand, ‘how useful is Equine Assisted Coaching in supporting the emotional well-being of young people from military families who must deal with regular and significant transitions in their lives related directly, and indirectly, to conflict situations.
In 2019, Dr Matthew Reeves and Dr Jess Macbeth were awarded £16,000 from British Blind Sport and Thomas Pocklington Trust to investigate the influence of motor competence in young people with visual impairment and their engagement in physical activities. The work will also consider the implications for mental health and wellbeing and the impact of family upon physical activity engagement.
- 2019 Cherry Marketing Institute
We were awarded £38,000 to examine the effects of taking a twice daily tart cherry drink on patellofemoral pain symptoms in recreational athletes. Patellofemoral pain is regarded as the most common chronic injury in sports medicine and physiotherapy clinics and is characterized by pain and inflammation. Therefore, this condition is typically treated using anti-inflammatory medications, although alternative approaches have increasingly been sought due to the potential cardiovascular and gastrointestinal effects associated with regular use of these medicines. Montmorency tart cherries are known to exhibit significant anti-inflammatory and pain mediating effects making them a potentially important natural remedy for chronic conditions such as patellofemoral pain. The primary purpose of our study was therefore, using a randomized control trial to test the ability of a Montmorency tart cherry juice blend to provide symptom relief in recreational athletes with patellofemoral pain.
- 2018 FEI Para Dressage Classification Research Grant
We were awarded £107,083 from the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI) to develop a comprehensive understanding of the effect of different physical impairment types on performance in dressage, which will inform recommendations for an evidence-based, sport-specific Classification system for Para Dressage. Advanced quantitative methods will provide novel biomechanical data from able-bodied and Para-equestrian athletes across all eligible impairments. Findings will ensure that the FEI Para-Equestrian Classification system for dressage is in line with the International Paralympic Committee’s Classification Code mandate for evidence-based systems of classification.