Changes in Pulmonary Function After Long-duration Adventure Racing in Adolescent Athletes

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Exercise Physiology
• Pulmonary Function Testing

Background:

• Adolescent athletes undertake strenuous endurance events.
• Understanding the impact of long-duration exercise on pulmonary function is crucial for this population.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the acute effects of a mixed-modality, long-duration adventure race on adolescent athletes' pulmonary function.
• To assess changes in expiratory function and respiratory muscle strength post-race.

Main Methods:

• Twenty male adolescent athletes completed a 68.5-km wilderness adventure race.
• Pulmonary function (FVC, FEV1, PEF) and respiratory muscle strength (MIP, MEP) were measured pre-race, immediately post-race, and 24 hours post-race.

Main Results:

• A significant decrease in forced vital capacity (FVC) was observed immediately after the race (-5.2%, p=0.01).
• No significant changes were found in forced expiratory volume in 1s (FEV1), peak expiratory flow (PEF), or respiratory muscle strength (MIP, MEP).

Conclusions:

• Long-duration adventure racing did not cause marked reductions in expiratory pulmonary function or respiratory muscle fatigue in trained adolescent athletes.
• The pulmonary system of these athletes demonstrated robustness in sustaining the ~5-6 hour mixed-modality event.