Effect of cold water immersion on exercise induced-inflammation

Introduction: Immersion in cold water has been used as a therapeutic treatment for restoring physical activity and mental health. The effect of this method on reduction of exercise induced-inflammation is not well known. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cold water immersion on CRP levels after an exhaustive aerobic training. Material & Methods: 20 male table tennis athletes were participated in this study as the subjects. The subjects were divided into the passive recovery (n=10) or cold water immersion (n=10) groups. All the subjects were performed the Bruce test protocol as the exhaustive aerobic training. Blood CRP was measured at three times: before and immediately after the exhaustive aerobic training and after the recovery strategies. Results: The results showed that the CRP levels increased immediately after the exhaustive aerobic training in the two groups (P<0.05). Blood CRP levels decreased after 15 min passive recovery and cold water immersion compare to after the exhaustive aerobic training (P<0.05). Bonferroni Post hoc test indicates that no significant differences were observed between two types of recovery. Conclusions: The results suggested that no significant differences are exist between the passive recovery and cold water immersion on reduction of exercise-induce inflammation; thus these two strategies are well for CRP reduction after intensive exercise.

Keywords:

Recovery , Inflammation , Water immersion , Exhaustive training