AUTHOR=Slysz Joshua T. , Burr Jamie F. 

TITLE=Ischemic Preconditioning: Modulating Pain Sensitivity and Exercise Performance

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Physiology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/articles/10.3389/fphys.2021.696488

DOI=10.3389/fphys.2021.696488

ISSN=1664-042X

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Purpose</bold> The purpose of this study was to examine whether an individual’s IPC-mediated change in cold pain sensitivity is associated with the same individual’s IPC-mediated change in exercise performance.</p><p><bold>Methods</bold> Thirteen individuals (8 males; 5 females, 27 ± 7 years, 55 ± 5 ml.kgs<sup>–1</sup>.min<sup>–1</sup>) underwent two separate cold-water immersion tests: with preceding IPC treatment and without. In addition, each participant undertook two separate 5-km cycling time trials: with preceding IPC treatment and without. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to assess the relationship between an individual’s change in cold-water pain sensitivity following IPC with their change in 5-km time trial performance following IPC.</p><p><bold>Results</bold> During the cold-water immersion test, pain intensity increased over time (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001) but did not change with IPC (<italic>p</italic> = 0.96). However, IPC significantly reduced the total time spent under pain (−9 ± 7 s; <italic>p</italic> = 0.001) during the cold-water immersion test. No relationship was found between an individual’s change in time under pain (<italic>r</italic> = −0.2, <italic>p</italic> = 0.6) or pain intensity (<italic>r</italic> = −0.3, <italic>p</italic> = 0.3) following IPC and their change in performance following IPC.</p><p><bold>Conclusion</bold> These findings suggest that IPC can modulate sensitivity to a painful stimulus, but this altered sensitivity does not explain the ergogenic efficacy of IPC on 5-km cycling performance.</p>