Acute and Chronic Effects of Endurance Running on Inflammatory Markers: A Systematic Review

Abstract

In order to understand the effect of endurance running on inflammation, it is necessary to quantify the extent to which acute and chronic running affects inflammatory mediators. The aim of this study was to summarize the literature on the effects of endurance running on inflammation mediators. Electronic searches were conducted on PubMED and Science Direct with no limits of date and language of publication. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized controlled trials (NRCTs) investigating the acute and chronic effects of running on inflammation markers in runners were reviewed by two researchers for eligibility. The modified Downs and Black checklist for the assesssments of the methodological quality of studies was subsequently used. Fifty-one studies were finally included. There were no studies with elite athletes. Only two studies were chronic interventions. Results revealed that acute and chronic endurance running may affect anti- and pro-inflammatory markers but methodological differences between studies do not allow comparisons or generalization of the results. The information provided in this systematic review would help practitioners for better designing further studies while providing reference values for a better understanding of inflammatory responses after different running events. Further longitudinal studies are needed to identify the influence of training load parameters on inflammatory markers in runners of different levels and training background.

Acute Effects of Triathlon Race on Oxidative Stress Biomarkers

“…We are all aware that, as recently reported, the endurance and ultraendurance activity is probably the most popular sport worldwide, and it is practiced for recreational, health, and competitive purposes [68]; nonetheless, altogether, the data obtained in the present study put in evidence that an appropriate training time is essential to achieve at the same time the lowest ROS production and IL-6 concentration; in other words, the "right" physical activity will have beneficial effects.…”

A Repeated-measures Case Series of Physiological Responses to a Transoceanic Rowing Race

“…In the same study, IL-10 had reduced to below pre-race levels by day 5 [21], unfortunately IL-1β and TNF-α were not measured. These pro-inflammatory responses are variable and highly dependent on the duration, intensity, and nature of the exercise involved [2,5,7,10,22] and consequently the degree of tissue damage and levels of oxidative stress [17,26,29,32,33]. Unfortunately, methodological differences between previous studies have created a challenge that prevents direct comparison or generalisation of cytokine results [2].…”

“…For similar reasons, reliable reference data for healthy populations are unavailable. Consequently, interpretation of cytokine results within groups typically depends on temporal changes occurring over time relative to a baseline value [2,5,7,10,22,23,31], in this case relative to pre-race findings. Due to logistical reasons, it was not possible to collect samples for analysis immediately post-race in this study and this must be seen as a limitation.…”

“…Due to logistical reasons, it was not possible to collect samples for analysis immediately post-race in this study and this must be seen as a limitation. However, as discussed above there is a large body of existing evidence that describes this initial period, where a predictable rise in IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α [2,5,7,10,22,23,31] occurs. There is a clear lack of evidence with regard the recovery period beyond 24-48 h, however [5,16].…”

“…Ultra-endurance exercise has also been shown to induce a profound inflammatory response, increasing systemic pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8) and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α)) and acute phase reactants (C-reactive protein (CRP), ferritin, etc.) in the period during and immediately following cessation of ultra-endurance exercise [2,5,7,10,22,23,31]. In an effort to control this process, cytokine inhibitors (e. g., IL-1ra, sTNF-r1, and sTNF-r2) and anti-inflammatory cytokines (e. g., Il-10) are released simultaneously to limit the magnitude and duration of the inflammatory response [21].…”