Zhang Qian, Yao Zhicheng, Ma Yifei, Yang Jeng-Sheng
Department of Research, Nuo De Fu Sports, Beijing, CHN.
College of Pharmacy, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, CHN.
Cureus. 2025 May 13;17(5):e84053. doi: 10.7759/cureus.84053. eCollection 2025 May.
Background Chiropractic and manual therapy professions are considered physically demanding and tend to be associated with high rates of work-related injuries. The reported injuries particularly affect the upper extremities and lower back. Despite extensive research on physical therapists, there are limited studies on chiropractors. This study aims to evaluate the cardiovascular fitness of manual therapy students to evaluate their risk of potential work-related injuries. Methods This cross-sectional study recruited 40 (17 to 26-year-olds) healthy male and female manual therapy students from Beijing Sports University. Participants performed the single-stage treadmill walking test to estimate their maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂ max). Body mass index (BMI) was calculated, and data were analyzed to compare physical and physiological variables between the gender and weight categories. Results Male students had a higher mean VO₂ max (51.23 ± 6.13 mL/min/kg) compared to female students (39.62 ± 3.81 mL/min/kg). Normal weight individuals had a slightly lower mean VO₂ max (47.40 ± 8.30 mL/min/kg) than overweight individuals (47.64 ± 6.14 mL/min/kg). The study also highlighted significant differences in height, weight, and BMI between genders. Conclusions The study indicates that manual therapy students have high VO₂ max values, suggesting good cardiovascular fitness, which is essential for their physically demanding careers. However, the higher VO₂ max in males and the minor difference between normal and overweight individuals suggest the need for tailored fitness programs. Preventive strategies to enhance physical resilience and reduce the risk of work-related injuries are imperative for students pursuing careers in chiropractic and manual therapy. Future research should focus on larger, more diverse samples and direct VO₂ max measurements for a more accurate evaluation of cardiovascular fitness and its influence on occupational performance.
背景 整脊疗法和手法治疗专业被认为对身体要求较高，且往往与高工作相关损伤率相关。报告的损伤尤其影响上肢和下背部。尽管对物理治疗师进行了广泛研究，但对整脊治疗师的研究有限。本研究旨在评估手法治疗专业学生的心血管健康状况，以评估他们潜在的工作相关损伤风险。方法 这项横断面研究从北京体育大学招募了40名（年龄在17至26岁之间）健康的男女手法治疗专业学生。参与者进行单阶段跑步机步行测试以估计他们的最大摄氧量（VO₂ max）。计算体重指数（BMI），并分析数据以比较性别和体重类别之间的身体和生理变量。结果 男学生的平均VO₂ max（51.23±6.13毫升/分钟/千克）高于女学生（39.62±3.81毫升/分钟/千克）。正常体重个体的平均VO₂ max（47.40±8.30毫升/分钟/千克）略低于超重个体（47.64±6.14毫升/分钟/千克）。该研究还突出了性别之间在身高、体重和BMI方面的显著差异。结论 该研究表明，手法治疗专业学生的VO₂ max值较高，表明心血管健康状况良好，这对他们对身体要求较高的职业至关重要。然而，男性较高的VO₂ max以及正常体重和超重个体之间的微小差异表明需要量身定制的健身计划。对于从事整脊疗法和手法治疗职业的学生来说，增强身体恢复力和降低工作相关损伤风险的预防策略至关重要。未来的研究应侧重于更大、更多样化的样本以及直接测量VO₂ max，以便更准确地评估心血管健康状况及其对职业表现的影响。
