Interleukin-6 and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness Do Not Vary During the Menstrual Cycle

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine if a difference in interleukin-6 (IL-6) and delayed onset muscles soreness (DOMS) exists in two different phases of the menstrual cycle. Nine runners performed one 75-min high-intensity interval running session during the early follicular (EF) phase and once during the midluteal (ML) phase of the menstrual cycle. Estrogen and progesterone levels were significantly reduced in the EF phase when compared to the ML phase. IL-6 levels increased from pre- to postexercise in the EF and ML phases (p < .001). There was no relationship between the IL-6 level and DOMS. The results suggest that menstruating female runners need not vary training throughout the month to reduce DOMS.

Influence of the Menstrual Cycle on Blood Markers of Muscle Damage and Inflammation Following Eccentric Exercise

“…In line with that, our lacking time-differences in IL-6 concentration between pre-trial and 2 h could be also due to the exercise modality. In the present exercise protocol, stimulus duration as well as the muscle mass involved in the exercise may be insufficient to increase IL-6 from pre-trial levels [15]. This has been demonstrated following aerobic protocols [40] which are generally long-lasting and involve larger muscle groups.…”

“…Another factor possibly involved in IL-6 changes may be the modality of exercise. A previous study obtained higher values of IL-6 in the mid-follicular phase in comparison to the MLP after a continuous running protocol [10], while a different study obtained no differences between the EFP and the MLP following a running protocol [15]. As such, more research is needed to clarify whether different exercise modalities could facilitate different increases in IL-6 in relation to menstrual cycle phase.…”

“…This is associated with the presence of some polymorphisms present in genes encoding for the myofibrillar proteins α-actinin 3 and myosin light chain kinase, which influence CK and myoglobin responses [28]. Altogether, this might indicate that higher estrogen concentrations during LFP and MLP may not provide extra protection against muscle damage in comparison to the EFP as the literature suggests [4,5,11,15].…”

“…Interestingly, the increase in IL-6 at 2 h in the MLP was not preceded by an increase in TNF-α. Therefore, such an increase in IL-6 might be not attributed to the inflammatory response but to the endocrine role of muscle, which enhances IL-6 concentrations after glycogen depletion during exercise [15]. However, on the basis of IL-6 as a myokine, the highest IL-6 concentrations have particularly been observed at the cessation or 30-min post exercise [38,39].…”

Sex and inflammation in respiratory diseases: a clinical viewpoint

“…Some studies did in fact confirm higher cytokine levels in females, especially in the context of estrogen stimulation [52]. However, other studies reported that IL-6 levels did not change during the menstrual cycle [53]. Although estrogens were shown to be able to slightly modulate cytokine levels, the variations observed were usually not significant or only approached significance when considering stimulations at various periods of the menstrual cycle.…”