Research and Scholarly Activity in Sports Medicine

Research is one of the three shields of Mayo Clinic and goes hand-in-hand with patient care. Working on the front edge of sports medicine, providers and researchers in our Onalaska Clinic program bring this new knowledge to caring for you or your loved ones.

Also view this file of research and scholarly activity by Sports Medicine staff (articles, book chapters, lectures, presentations and abstracts)

Ongoing research topics:

• The relationship between training load and recovery in athletes
• Changes in energy availability and body composition throughout the season in athletes
• The effects of creatine supplementation on markers of clinical health in high school athletes
• The effects of creatine supplementation on concussion recovery
• Upper limits of FFMI in bodybuilders and powerlifters and natural vs. enhanced athletes
• Differences in energy availability between single versus back-to-back games in female collegiate soccer players
• Perceptions of nutritional requirements in collegiate athletes
• Recent trends in concussions
• Surrogate measures of low energy availability in female athletes

Research capabilities:

• Body Composition & Anthropometrics
  • Dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA): Body Fat percent;  Fat-free mass; Fat mass; Bone mineral density; Bone mineral content
  • Waist-to-hip ratio
  • Relative fat mass
  • Fat-free mass index
• Aerobic Capacity – Indirect Calorimetry (Metabolic cart)
• Lactate threshold
• Strength testing – Isotonic or Isokinetic
• Markers of clinical health
  • Resting vitals
  • Complete blood count
  • Comprehensive metabolic panel
  • Hormone profiles
  • Cytokines
• Ultrasound-Guided Injections – Steroid
• Clinical Evaluation (via Sports Medicine Physician)
• Nutritional Analysis – Energy Availability
• Team Sport Monitoring – Polar Pro Team Monitoring System (Live heart rate and GPS monitoring)
• Electronic health records - epidemiological reviews

Past and present research collaborations:

• Exercise & Sport Science and Athletics Program – University of Wisconsin – La Crosse, La Crosse, WI
• Chad Kerksick, PhD. Exercise & Performance Nutrition Laboratory, Lindenwood University, St. Charles, MO
• Margaret Jones, PhD. Kinesiology, Sports Medicine Assessment Research and Teaching (SMART) Laboratory, George Mason University
• Clayton Camic, PhD. Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, Northern Illinois University