Association between physiological stress and skin temperature response after a half marathon

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the association between skin temperature response and the physiological stress after a half marathon. Approach:Seventeen runners were measured 48 h before, 24 h before, 24 h after and 48 h after completing a half marathon. The measurements on each day of testing included blood markers (creatine kinase [CK] and glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase [GOT]), perception of pain and fatigue (using a visual analogue scale), skin temperature (using infrared thermography), and jump performance (using countermovement jump test).Main results: CK (p<0.001 and ES=2.1), GOT (p=0.04 and ES=1.3), and perception of fatigue and pain (p<0.001 and ES>1.0) increased 24 h after the half marathon, whereas jump performance decreased (p<0.01 and ES=0.4). No increase of skin temperature was observed in the tests after the competition and no regression model was able to predict physiological stress using skin temperature. Only a bivariate correlation was observed between the 24 h variation (pre -24h) of CK and the skin temperature of the posterior upper limb (p=0.04 and r= 0.5), and between the 48 h variation (pre -48h) of pain perceived and the skin temperature of the knee (p<0.01 and r= 0.6). Significance: In conclusion, follow-up on basal skin temperatures does not seem to be an adequate method to detect physiological stress after a half marathon. In line with the observed results, we recommend caution when interpreting peaks in basal skin temperature in field sports assessments.

Relationship between Skin Temperature Variation and Muscle Damage Markers after a Marathon Performed in a Hot Environmental Condition

“…The pre-event measurements were 15 days before (Pre 15d ) and 45 min before the event (Pre 0h ) without warm-up, and 24 h (Post 24h ) and 6 days (Post 6d ) post-marathon (see Figure 1 ). As Pre 0h could be affected by a greater activation of the sympathetic activity of the autonomic nervous system to be a measurement close to the competition [ 15 ], Tsk was assessed at Pre 15d to have a more realistic baseline value. Moreover, Tsk was also measured at Post 6d to assess thermal recovery (if Tsk was increased by the competition) and whether it reached values similar to Pre 15d , also to be understood as a baseline measure to compare the Post 24h Tsk values.…”

“…to be a measurement close to the competition [15], Tsk was assessed at Pre15d to have a more realistic baseline value. Moreover, Tsk was also measured at Post6d to assess thermal recovery (if Tsk was increased by the competition) and whether it reached values similar to Pre15d, also to be understood as a baseline measure to compare the Post24h Tsk values.…”

“…Although sCK and sLDH are considered good indicators of muscle damage [ 11 ], other indirect tools have been used to decrease the invasive procedure during blood collection, such as using visual analog scales to measure DOMS [ 12 ]. Although the monitorization of baseline skin temperature (Tsk) using infrared thermography (IRT) was another methodology proposed, the results of the different investigations are contradictory [ 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ].…”

“…However, a recent study indicated that muscle damage increases peripheral vasoconstriction, covering up inflammatory effects [ 16 ]. In addition, while some studies observed increments of baseline Tsk in the posterior days after exercise [ 14 , 17 ], others did not find differences [ 13 , 15 , 16 ], which makes further investigation more necessary. Finally, most of these studies performed the exercise in moderate environmental conditions, such as a marathon at 16 °C [ 16 ], a half-marathon at 15 °C [ 15 ], calf-rising repetitions at 23 °C [ 13 ], or triathlon training camp at 12 °C [ 14 ], and only one study in which the exercise was soccer matches at higher temperatures (28 °C) [ 17 ].…”

An investigation of temperature-sensing textiles for temperature monitoring during sub-maximal cycling trials

“…An alternative method involves the use of infrared (IR) thermal imaging cameras, [14][15][16][17][18] which can provide a whole-body surface map of skin temperature. However, the cost of these cameras is often prohibitive, preventing widespread adoption outside of the laboratory.…”