PLoS ONE (Jan 2014)

The effect of three different (-135°C) whole body cryotherapy exposure durations on elite rugby league players.

  • James Selfe,
  • Jill Alexander,
  • Joseph T Costello,
  • Karen May,
  • Nigel Garratt,
  • Stephen Atkins,
  • Stephanie Dillon,
  • Howard Hurst,
  • Matthew Davison,
  • Daria Przybyla,
  • Andrew Coley,
  • Mark Bitcon,
  • Greg Littler,
  • Jim Richards

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0086420
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 1
p. e86420

Abstract

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BackgroundWhole body cryotherapy (WBC) is the therapeutic application of extreme cold air for a short duration. Minimal evidence is available for determining optimal exposure time.PurposeTo explore whether the length of WBC exposure induces differential changes in inflammatory markers, tissue oxygenation, skin and core temperature, thermal sensation and comfort.MethodThis study was a randomised cross over design with participants acting as their own control. Fourteen male professional first team super league rugby players were exposed to 1, 2, and 3 minutes of WBC at -135°C. Testing took place the day after a competitive league fixture, each exposure separated by seven days.ResultsNo significant changes were found in the inflammatory cytokine interleukin six. Significant reductions (pConclusionThree brief exposures to WBC separated by 1 week are not sufficient to induce physiological changes in IL-6 or core temperature. There are however significant changes in tissue oxyhaemoglobin, deoxyhaemoglobin, tissue oxygenation index, skin temperature and thermal sensation. We conclude that a 2 minute WBC exposure was the optimum exposure length at temperatures of -135°C and could be applied as the basis for future studies.