PMID- 34387950
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20211130
LR  - 20211130
IS  - 1877-8879 (Electronic)
IS  - 1877-8860 (Linking)
VI  - 21
IP  - 2
DP  - 2021 Apr 27
TI  - Pain sensitivity increases more in younger runners during an ultra-marathon.
PG  - 364-371
LID - 10.1515/sjpain-2020-0032 [doi]
AB  - OBJECTIVES: Ultra-endurance research interest has increased in parallel with an 
      increased worldwide participation in these extreme activities. Pain-related data 
      for the growing population of ultra-endurance athletes, however, is insufficient. 
      More data is especially needed regarding the variation in the aging populations 
      of these athletes. We have previously shown that peripheral and central pain 
      sensitivity increases during an ultra-marathon. To further clarify these changes 
      in pain sensitivity during ultra-endurance competition we investigated these 
      variations in two age populations: Younger runners </= 39-year-old (younger) and an 
      older group of runners being >/= 40 years of age (older). METHODS: Subjects were 
      recruited from ultra-marathon competitions held over a three-year period in 
      Florida, USA. All courses were flat with either hard macadam surface or soft 
      sandy trails; run in hot, humid weather conditions. Pressure pain threshold (PPT) 
      was measured with a pressure algometer on the distal, dominant arm before and 
      immediately after an ultra-marathon. Conditioned pain modulation (CPM) was also 
      measured pre and post, immediately after the PPT by placing the non-dominant hand 
      in a cold-water bath maintained at 13.5 +/- 1.5  degrees C. The difference between the pre 
      and post measurements for both PPT and CPM were calculated and referred to as 
      DeltaPPT and DeltaCPM, respectively for analysis. Data were analyzed with a Mixed 2 x 2 
      (Within X Between) MANOVA. RESULTS: Both PPT and CPM decreased during the 
      ultra-marathons (p<0.05) in the younger group of runners. In the older runners 
      there was not a statistically significant decrease in PPT during the 
      ultramarathons whereas CPM did significantly decrease statistically (p=0.031). 
      The DeltaPPT was less in the older group compared to the younger group (p=0.018). The 
      difference between the younger and older groups DeltaCPM approached statistical 
      significance at p=0.093. CONCLUSIONS: This statistical evidence suggests that the 
      overall increase in peripheral and possibly central pain sensitivity was 
      different between our age groups. Pain sensitivity during the ultra-marathon 
      increased more in our younger group of runners than in our older group. This 
      study suggests that there is an unidentified factor in an older population of 
      ultra-marathon runners that results in an attenuated increase in pain sensitivity 
      during an ultra-endurance activity. These factors may include a decreased innate 
      immune response, lower fitness level, lower exertion during the ultra-marathon, 
      variation in endorphin, enkephalin, endocannabinoid and psychological factors in 
      the older age runners.
CI  - (c) 2020 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston.
FAU - Agnew, James W
AU  - Agnew JW
AD  - Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, FL, USA.
FAU - Roy, Alexandre L
AU  - Roy AL
AD  - Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, FL, USA.
FAU - Hammer, Steven B
AU  - Hammer SB
AD  - Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, FL, USA.
FAU - Strale, Frederick F
AU  - Strale FF
AD  - Indian River State College, Fort Pierce, FL, USA.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
DEP - 20210106
PL  - Germany
TA  - Scand J Pain
JT  - Scandinavian journal of pain
JID - 101520867
SB  - IM
MH  - Adult
MH  - Aged
MH  - Humans
MH  - Marathon Running
MH  - Pain
MH  - *Pain Threshold
MH  - Physical Endurance
MH  - *Running
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - conditioned pain modulation
OT  - hyperalgesia
OT  - innate immunity
OT  - pain
OT  - pressure pain threshold
OT  - ultra-endurance exercise
EDAT- 2021/08/14 06:00
MHDA- 2021/12/01 06:00
CRDT- 2021/08/13 12:30
PHST- 2020/03/05 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2020/10/29 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2021/08/13 12:30 [entrez]
PHST- 2021/08/14 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2021/12/01 06:00 [medline]
AID - sjpain-2020-0032 [pii]
AID - 10.1515/sjpain-2020-0032 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Scand J Pain. 2021 Jan 6;21(2):364-371. doi: 10.1515/sjpain-2020-0032. Print 2021 
      Apr 27.