Amanda Clare Benson

With the increasing adoption of virtual reality (VR) in anatomy education, understanding VR‐induced symptoms and effects (VRISE) is pivotal to effective curriculum design. To compare self‐reported VRISE across different VR controller types, the study included 199 responses from students aged 18–54, enrolled in visceral anatomy or neuroanatomy courses, assigned to handheld ( n = 109), hand‐track ( n = 50), or haptic ( n = 40) controller groups. Participants rated VRISE (mental stress, physical stress, and sickness) on a 5‐point Likert scale, following a 5‐ to 10‐min VR activity. Overall, VRISE scores were low (Median = 1.33, Q1–Q3 1:00–2:00), with over 85% reporting none to minimal symptoms and scores did not differ by controller type ( ε ² R = 0.016). Males reported significantly lower VRISE (Median = 1:00, Q1–Q3 1:00–2:00) than females (Median = 1.67, Q1–Q3 1:00–2.33) and participants identifying as “others” (Median = 2.50, Q1–Q3 1.92–3.33), indicating a gender difference in VR experience, although interpretation should be cautious due to the small “other” sample. Subgroup analyses showed no associations with age, prior VR experience, or course enrolment. However, regression modeling indicated that prior VR experience increased the odds of reporting VRISE (OR 3.09, p = 0.013), while males were less likely to report symptoms (OR 0.15, p = 0.047), suggesting user characteristics may influence VRISE risk beyond content or device factors. Neither factor was significantly associated with controller type. Overall, VR anatomy sessions were well tolerated, with minimal VRISE across handheld, hand‐tracking, and haptic controllers. These findings support the safe use of diverse VR controllers in anatomy education, although targeted support may benefit some demographic groups.

Walking is one of the most common forms of physical activity in the UK, promoted by the National Health Service (NHS) through guidelines recommending moderate-intensity exercise. However, the subjective interpretation of "moderate" intensity can lead to inconsistent adherence. Cadence-based thresholds, such as at least 100 steps per minute, have been proposed as an objective alternative, but these absolute markers may not reflect individual fitness levels. Wearable technologies offer an opportunity to personalise physical activity intensity using physiological markers like percentage heart rate reserve (%HRR), and to guide behaviour using nudge-based approaches such as cadence cueing. This study investigated whether metronome (auditory) and haptic cadence cues delivered via an Apple Watch app could guide users to criterion moderate-intensity walking (40 - 59% HRR). Seventy-four adults (18–65 years) completed three 10-minute overground walking trials on a ~60 m figure-of-eight track: (1) self-paced walking guided by NHS moderate-intensity guidelines, (2) walking to an auditory cadence cue, and (3) walking to a haptic cadence cue. Cadence and %HRR were recorded in each condition. Bayesian posterior distributions showed the following mean %HRR (95% credible intervals): self-paced = 41% (39–44%), auditory = 45% (42–47%), and haptic = 43% (41–45%). The proportion of participants reaching 40 - 59% HRR was highest in the auditory (76%) and haptic (65%) cueing conditions, compared to self-paced (41%). These findings suggest wearable-guided cadence cueing, particularly auditory cues, more effectively supports individuals in achieving moderate-intensity walking compared to current NHS guidelines.

Leisure studies curricula, in keeping with the broader higher education sector, are in a state of flux due to the rapid proliferation of transformative technologies such as generative artificial in...

Leisure practices are not static with scholarship having long recognized leisure as a socially produced activity whose meanings and practices are continually renegotiated through participation, or ...

Four-wheeled walkers are widely used mobility aids for older adults. With the emergence of commercial smart-walkers, flaws in the design of rollators may carry over to the design of these emerging smart-walkers, necessitating a review of their design and standardisation. This review aims to evaluate how health, design, regulatory, research, and user factors intersect in the development and implementation of rollators and smart-walkers. It seeks to identify gaps in current standards, literature, and commercial products, with the goal of informing more user context-sensitive design and implementation approaches. The findings highlight limitations in current standardisation, regulatory and risk management frameworks for emerging commercial smart-walkers for personal and home use, and significant scope for improving rollator design to better reflect diverse user contexts, including device functionality, usability, and education. Additionally, the findings show that rollators and smart-walkers must evolve to adopt an inclusive design approach that prioritises ergonomic considerations, usability, safety, and the user's contextual relevance. This review underscores the importance of collaboration among health professionals, regulators, researchers, designers, and users to enhance rollator efficacy, usability, and safety. Future efforts in rollator and smart-walker design should incorporate structured feedback mechanisms and standardised evaluation tools to assess how users interact with devices and documentation. By addressing these factors, this review offers insights to guide the future design and implementation of rollators and smart-walkers, ensuring they better meet the needs, preferences and contexts of diverse users in personal and home settings.

Exercise can reduce physiological and psychological symptoms associated with depression and anxiety. However, it is unknown which mode of exercise, if any, is more beneficial. To determine whether aerobic, resistance, or aerobic and resistance exercise improves depressive and/or anxiety symptoms in individuals diagnosed with depression or anxiety. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. Five electronic databases were searched, until February 24, 2024. Studies were included for analysis based on satisfying quality appraisal standards and the established inclusion criteria associated with aerobic or resistance exercise in adults with a diagnosis of depression or anxiety. Random effects meta‐analysis was performed where possible. Thirty‐two randomised controlled trial studies (n = 3243 participants) met the inclusion criteria for this systematic review, and 26 studies (n = 2681 participants) were included in the meta‐analyses. For the 25 studies assessing the effect of exercise on depressive symptoms, the pooled standardised mean difference (SMD) favoured exercise as a beneficial treatment of depression (−0.97, 95% confidence interval [CI] −1.28 to −0.66), with a large magnitude of effect. For the 11 studies reporting the effect of exercise on anxiety symptoms, the pooled SMD results revealed that exercise had a significant, moderate magnitude of effect favouring exercise treatment (−0.66, 95% CI −1.09 to −0.23). No studies excessively influenced the outcomes of depression and anxiety. Aerobic, resistance, or a mixture of aerobic and resistance exercise is beneficial for improving symptoms of depression and anxiety.Protocol Registration: PROSPERO registration number: CRD42019119341 (date of registration: 5/2/2019).

In sport there are negative aspects of technology use and its innovation that includes concerns about reducing athlete skill diversity. To address this, reconceptualization of the product design process and the position of business models during technology innovation is needed. This paper explores ways in which theories of skill acquisition can be integrated with product design and entrepreneurship, using the interdisciplinary research base on creativity to bridge these domains. Intersecting concepts used to explain creativity are used to evaluate how shared constraints under which members of transdisciplinary teams interact might enhance coordination, communication, and integration of skills during technology innovation. A key gap that we address is how to conceptualize the role that the commercial perspective should have on technology innovation in sport, and the position of users (athletes, coaches, and sport scientists) therein. We propose using ‘sport technology incubators’ as vehicles to integrate business, design, and motor learning frameworks to examine empirical questions surrounding ways of optimizing sport technology innovation while sustainably supporting athlete skill in contexts of training and competition.

Introduction: Many people fail to meet physical activity guidelines. One possible solution is wearable technology. Yet it is unclear if popular devices such as the Apple Watch can accurately measure intensity, which is a cornerstone of physical activity guidelines. We developed a bespoke Apple Watch app based on the use of relative intensity (%HRR), with the aim to determine if the bespoke app measures ‘moderate’ intensity more accurately compared to the native Apple Watch Activity app, using % oxygen consumption reserve (%VO ₂ R) as the criterion. Methods: Seventy-four participants (18–65 years) attended the laboratory twice. During Visit 1, they completed medical screening, and measurements of resting heart rate, maximal oxygen consumption, and maximal heart rate on a motorised treadmill. During Visit 2, participants completed 5-minute treadmill bouts starting at 3.5 km.h ⁻¹ , increasing by 0.5 km.h ⁻¹ until the bespoke app recorded 3 minutes at ≥40%HRR, and the native app recorded 5 minutes of ‘exercise’. Oxygen consumption and heart rate were recorded. Bayesian posterior distributions were used to compare the two apps. Results: At the walking speed that the native app recorded exercise, the mean (95% HDI) %VO ₂ R was 33 (31-36)%, which is below moderate relative intensity (40%HRR). This is compared to a mean (95% HDI) of 43 (40-44)% for our bespoke app. Conclusion: The bespoke app measured relative moderate intensity more accurately compared to the native app when compared to the %VO ₂ R criterion. Exercise guidelines and wearable devices should incorporate relative measures of physical activity to better individualise monitoring and prescription.

BACKGROUND Low back pain has been identified by the World Health Organisation as the leading cause of disability globally, with 4 to 25% progressing to a presentation of chronic low back pain (CLBP). Exercise based therapy is advocated for those with CLBP, with the use of virtual reality (VR) a potential modality to address poor adherence. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study, using surface electromyography (sEMG), was to understand the feasibility of co-designed bespoke VR experiences to elicit muscle activity within those with CLBP. METHODS Using a cross-sectional descriptive study design, CLBP sufferers (n=14) underwent three of five co-designed, bespoke VR experiences with muscle activity quantified using surface electromyography of muscles of the lower back. RESULTS Muscles were observed to be active for 52.9 ± 29.8% of the duration of the VR experiences at a very low intensity of exercise with a significant interaction (F(12)=2.207, p=0.011) effect between VR experience and muscles activated observed. CONCLUSIONS This investigation established the feasibility of co-designed VR experiences to elicit muscle activity at very low levels of intensity for those with CLBP. Variation in muscle activity between muscles and VR experiences demonstrates how the modality may need to be tailored through the professional oversight to ensure the desired range of motion and specific muscle activity is elicited.

This study investigated the inter-rater reliability and validity of the Fulltrack AI application, to measure ball speed under a range of cricket training conditions in comparison to a radar gun. Ball speed (km/hr) of 1081 deliveries (pace = 783; spin = 298) from a range of training sessions and conditions were recorded simultaneously using a radar gun (Stalker Pro IIs) and iOS device running Fulltrack AI (v1.13.1). Statistical analyses were conducted in R Statistical Software. Reliability was assessed with standard error of measurement (SEM), coefficient of variation (CV) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Agreement was assessed using Bland Altman's 95% limits of agreement (LOA). Validity was assessed using generalised additive models (GAMs). Pace deliveries were associated with good agreement (ICC: 0.87–0.90, CV: 2.56–3.13%), whilst spin deliveries demonstrated lower agreement (ICC: 0.72–0.76, CV: 3.08–4.33%). LOA established poor to fair levels of agreement, exceeding maximal allowable differences (>3%). GAMs identified Fulltrack AI overestimated ball speed (pace: estimate 0.72–0.77 m/s, SE = 0.34–0.34; spin: estimate 1.09–1.18 m/s, SE = 0.23–0.25) when compared to the radar gun. Fulltrack AI is an ecologically valid and reliable field-based method for measuring ball speed. However, caution is warranted given the significant overestimation of ball speed in contrast with a radar gun, even after controlling for different training conditions, suggesting software could benefit from refinement.