In the Sports section of the Toronto Star this week, Randy Starkman wrote an article titled "Chan uses cutting-edge procedure to put hurt on injury." Within the article, Starkman explains a new type of therapy used by athletes to decrease healing time. Platelets in the blood are key to tissue healing and a concentration of them in an injured area can speed the recovery process.
The therapy involves the extraction of the athlete's blood, where it is then spun and concentrated in a centrifuge, and then re-injected into the injured area. There is an excellent diagram included in the article that explains the process further. This would be a great article for supplementary reading in Unit 1 on Joint Mechanics and Joint Injuries in the Exercise Science resource.
This new procedure is actually banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency although some athletes can get around this by making an application under the therapeutic use exemption (TUE). What do your students think about this procedure? Is this a form of blood-doping? Is using this procedure fair?
Friday, October 23, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment