Low Level Laser Therapy in Muscle Fatigue and Muscle Recovery (LLLT)

University of Nove de Julho

Status: Completed

Conditions: Skeletal Muscle Recovery; Muscle; Fatigue, Heart

Treatments: Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT01844271

Uninove

Details and patient eligibility

About

Muscle fatigue and muscle recovery after exercise are recent areas of research involving Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) and many factors remain unknown, such as optimal doses, power and application parameters, mechanisms of action, effects on long-term exercise and the long-term effects on skeletal muscle recovery.

The present research project aims to assess the effects of long-term recovery of LLLT in skeletal muscle after exercise and identify the optimal dose application of LLLT.

After defining the best dose of application, we recruited two groups which will be irradiated with different power, 100mW and 400mW in order to seek the optimal parameter of low level laser therapy in performance.

The investigators believed that the Low Level Laser Therapy can delay the physiological process of muscle fatigue, reduce injury or skeletal muscle microdamage arising from physical effort and accelerate muscle recovery after exercise.

Full description

To achieve the proposed objectives it was performed a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial, with voluntary participation of high-level soccer athletes.

Participants received an application of low level laser prior to execution of a strenuous exercise. It was used a laser with a cluster of 5 diodes (810 nm, 200 mW each diode) with different doses (placebo, 2J, 6J, 10J) and power of 200mW.

In a second step, with the optimal dose already defined, this was used to be applied with different powers in two experimental groups, 100mW and 400mW.

The investigators analysed parameters related to volunteers exercise performance (torque peak / maximum voluntary contraction), delayed onset muscle soreness, and biochemical markers of muscle damage (CK and LDH), inflammation (interleukin 1 and 6, alpha tumoral necrosis factor) and oxidative stress (TBARS, CAT, SOD and carbonylated proteins). The analysis was performed before exercise protocols, after 1 minute, and 1, 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours after the end of exercise protocol in both parts of the study.

Enrollment: 28 patients

Sex: Male

Ages: 18 to 35 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• professional soccer players aged between 18 and 35 years old;
• not presenting historical musculoskeletal injury in regions of the hip and knee in the 2 months preceding the study;
• not making use of pharmacological agents and/or nutritional supplements;
• participating with minimum frequency of 80% of the training team

Exclusion criteria

• athletes who experience musculoskeletal injury during the study;
• athletes who for whatever reason have their training routine changed with respect to the rest of the team during the course of study.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

---

28 participants in 6 patient groups, including a placebo group

Placebo Low Level Laser

Placebo Comparator group

Description:

Application of low level laser without any dose (0 Joule) before strenuous exercise. A laser device with a cluster of 5 diodes (810 nm, 200 mW) each diode was used for this study.

Treatment:

Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)

2 Joules Low Level Laser

Experimental group

Description:

Application of 2 Joules of Low Level Laser Therapy before strenuous exercise with a cluster of 5 diode (810 nm, 200 mW each diode).

Treatment:

Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)

6 Joules Low Level Laser Therapy

Experimental group

Description:

Application of 6 Joules of Low Level Laser Therapy before strenuous exercise with a cluster of 5 diode (810 nm, 200 mW each diode).

Treatment:

Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)

10 Joules Low Level Therapy

Experimental group

Description:

Application of 10 Joules of Low Level Laser Therapy before strenuous exercise with a cluster of 5 diode (810 nm, 200 mW each diode).

Treatment:

Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)

Power of 100mW

Experimental group

Description:

After assigning ideal dose of application it was delimited two experimental groups which was irradiated with the dose established by the first part of the study and power of 100mW.

Treatment:

Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)

Power of 400mW

Experimental group

Description:

After assigning ideal dose of application it was delimited two experimental groups which were irradiated with the dose established by the first part of the study and power of 400mW.

Treatment:

Device: Low Level Laser (LLL)