Effects of two external cooling strategies on physiological and perceptual responses of athletes with tetraplegia during and after exercise in the heat

• Published in: Journal of thermal biology 2024-07, Vol.123, p.103896, Article 103896
• Main Authors: Lôbo, Ingrid Ludimila Bastos, Wanner, Samuel Penna, Guerreiro, Renato de Carvalho, Coelho, Bruno Lourenço Pinto, Coimbra, Felipe Emanuel dos Santos, Martins, Maria Eduarda Machado, Duarte, Larissa Cristina de Abreu, Stieler, Eduardo, de Mello, Marco Túlio, Silva, Andressa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Anhidrosis; Athletes; Body Temperature; Body Temperature Regulation; chest; cooling; dry-bulb temperature; Exercise; fever; Heart Rate; heat; heat stress; Hot Temperature; Humans; Male; males; Paralympic athletes; Physical exertion; Quadriplegia - physiopathology; Quadriplegia - therapy; sensation; Skin Temperature; Spinal cord injuries; Temperature; Thermoregulation; Thermosensing; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0306-4565
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2024.103896

Athletes with tetraplegia may experience marked hyperthermia while exercising under environmental heat stress due to their limited ability to dissipate heat through evaporative means. This study investigated the effectiveness of two external cooling strategies (i.e., spraying water onto the body surface or using a cooling vest) on physiological and perceptual variables in tetraplegic athletes during and after an aerobic exercise session in a hot environment. Nine male wheelchair rugby players performed an incremental test to determine their maximum aerobic power output. After that, they were subjected to three experimental trials in a counter-balanced order: control (CON, no body cooling), cooling vest (CV), and water spraying (WS). During these trials, they performed 30 min of a submaximal exercise (at 65% of their maximum aerobic power) inside an environmental chamber set to maintain the dry-bulb temperature at 32 °C. The following variables were recorded at regular intervals during the exercise and for an additional 30 min following the exertion (i.e., post-exercise recovery) with the participants also exposed to 32 °C: body core temperature (TCORE), skin temperature (TSKIN), heart rate (HR), rating of perceived exertion (RPE), thermal comfort (TC), and thermal sensation (TS). While exercising in CON conditions, the tetraplegic athletes had the expected increases in TCORE, TSKIN, HR, RPE, and TC and TS scores. HR, TC, and TS decreased gradually toward pre-exercise values after the exercise, whereas TCORE and TSKIN remained stable at higher values. Using a cooling vest decreased the temperature measured only on the chest and reduced the scores of RPE, TC, and TS during and after exercise but did not influence the other physiological responses of the tetraplegic athletes. In contrast, spraying water onto the athletes' body surface attenuated the exercise-induced increase in TSKIN, led to lower HR values during recovery, and was also associated with better perception during and after exercise. We conclude that water spraying is more effective than the cooling vest in attenuating physiological strain induced by exercise-heat stress. However, although both external cooling strategies do not influence exercise hyperthermia, they improve the athletes’ thermal perception and reduce perceived exertion. •Tetraplegic athletes may overheat during exercise under environmental heat stress.•Water spraying reduced physiological strain more effectively than the cooling