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Can pre-exercise photobiomodulation improve muscle endurance and promote recovery from muscle strength and injuries in people with different activity levels? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

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Abstract

Photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) was introduced as an ergogenic aid for sport performance in healthy individuals is still controversial. The main aim of this study is to assess the potential enhancements in muscle endurance and recovery from muscle strength and injuries mediated by PBMT among individuals exhibiting diverse activity levels. Randomized controlled trials (RCT) of PBMT interventions for healthy people (both trained and untrained individuals) exercising were searched (up to January 16, 2024) in four electronic databases: Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus and Embase. Primary outcome measures included muscle endurance, muscle strength and creatine kinase (CK) levels; secondary outcome measure included Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels. Subgroup analyses based on physical activity levels were conducted for each outcome measure. Thirty-four RCTs were included based on the article inclusion and exclusion criteria. Statistical results showed that PBMT significantly improved muscle endurance (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.31, 95%CI 0.11, 0.51, p < 0.01), indicating a moderate effect size. It also facilitated the recovery of muscle strength (SMD = 0.24, 95%CI 0.10, 0.39, p < 0.01) and CK (mean difference [MD] = -77.56, 95%CI -112.67, -42.44, p < 0.01), indicating moderate and large effect sizes, respectively. Furthermore, pre-application of PBMT significantly improved muscle endurance, recovery of muscle strength and injuries in physically inactive individuals and athletes (p < 0.05), while there was no significant benefit for physically active individuals. Pre-application of PBMT improves muscle endurance and promotes recovery from muscle strength and injury (includes CK and LDH) in athletes and sedentary populations, indicating moderate to large effect sizes, but is ineffective in physically active populations. This may be due to the fact that physically active people engage in more resistance training, which leads to a decrease in the proportion of red muscle fibres, thus affecting photobiomodulation.

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Abbreviations

CK:

Creatine kinase

CP:

Carbonylated protein

EIMD:

Exercise-induced muscle damage

IPAQ:

International Physical Activity Questionnaire

LEDT:

Light emitting diode therapy

LDH:

Lactate dehydrogenase

LLLT:

Low-level laser therapy

MIVC:

Maximum isometric voluntary contraction

MVC:

Maximum voluntary contraction

PBMT:

Photobiomodulation therapy

ROS:

Reactive oxygen species

SOD:

Superoxide dismutase

TBARS:

Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances

VAS:

Visual Analogue Scale

M:

Mean

MD:

Mean difference

SEM:

Standard error of mean

SMD:

Standardized mean difference

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Sport Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, No.1 Wenyuan Road Qixia District, Nanjing, 210046, China

    Bo-Ming Li, Pin-Shi Ni, Zhuang-Zhi Wang & Fang-Hui Li

  2. School of Physical and Health Education, Nanjing Normal University Taizhou College, Taizhou, China

    Da-Yong Qiu

  3. School of Physical Education and Sports Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China

    Rui Duan, Luodan Yang & Cheng-Yi Liu

  4. Qixia Sports Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China

    Bao-Yi Chen

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Li, BM., Qiu, DY., Ni, PS. et al. Can pre-exercise photobiomodulation improve muscle endurance and promote recovery from muscle strength and injuries in people with different activity levels? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Lasers Med Sci 39, 132 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10103-024-04079-y

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