Clinical trial NCT06970366: Cryotherapy on Muscle Function
Official title: Cryotherapy and Muscle Function: Assessing Injury Risk in Immediate Return-to-Play Scenarios
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Cold
Cryotherapy
Cryotherapy Effect
Muscle Activity
EMG
Keywords: cryotherapy
muscle activity
Lead sponsor: Okan University
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2025-05-14
Enrollment: 52
Sex: MALE
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 25
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: On-field sports injuries are a common issue that significantly impacts athletes' performance and overall health. In team sports such as football, basketball, and volleyball, muscle and joint injuries are particularly frequent. Cryotherapy, including cold pack and cold spray applications, is widely used in the acute management of such injuries due to its practicality and rapid application. It is effective in reducing pain and edema by constricting blood vessels and slowing neural activity. While its analgesic effects are well-known, some studies suggest cryotherapy may also influence balance and proprioception. This study aims to investigate the acute effects of cryotherapy (cold pack and spray) on muscle mechanical properties, muscle strength, pain and EMG activity in healthy individuals.

A randomized, controlled experimental study will be conducted on healthy participants. Subjects will be divided into two groups: cold pack application and cold spray application. Quadriceps muscle mechanical properties will be assessed using a Myoton device; muscle strength will be evaluated via dynamometry, and muscle activity will be evaluated via electromyographic (EMG) device- NeuroTrac® MyoPlus 2. Each participant will be evaluated at four time points: baseline (pre-intervention), immediately after the intervention, 3 minutes post-intervention, and 5 minutes post-intervention. The effects of each modality will be compared both within and between groups to assess the short-term physiological changes induced by cryotherapy.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* being male
* aging 18-25
* having no history of cardiovascular or peripheral vascular disease, diabetes mellitus, neuromuscular pathology, peripheral neuropathy, lower extremity pain, or previous lower extremity surgery
* being volunteer

Exclusion Criteria:

* having a history of insensitivity to local heat or cold

Primary outcomes:
measure: Muscle Properties
timeFrame: from the application (baseline), immediately after the application, 3 minutes post-application, and to 5 minutes post-application.
measure: Muscle strength
timeFrame: from the application (baseline), immediately after the application, 3 minutes post-application, and to 5 minutes post-application.
measure: Muscle activity
timeFrame: from the application (baseline), immediately after the application, 3 minutes post-application, and to 5 minutes post-application.
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Pressure pain threshold
timeFrame: from the application (baseline), immediately after the application, 3 minutes post-application, and to 5 minutes post-application.
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Istanbul
country: Turkey
facility: Istanbul Okan University
state: Tuzla
Study officials:
References:
citation: Cryotherapy for acute musculoskeletal injuries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.