Effects of vibrations on gastrocnemius medialis tissue oxygenation

Aurel Coza, Benno M. Nigg, Jeff F. Dunn

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

27 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: Whole-body vibrations are known to affect muscle activity and tissue oxygenation, but some energetic aspects are still poorly understood. This study investigates the effects of whole-body vibration on gastrocnemius muscle oxygen utilization rate and tissue oxygenation dynamics during exercise. Methods: The effects of vibration on gastrocnemius medialis muscle oxygenation were investigated during a dynamic exercise on a sample of 16 active male subjects (age = 26.3 ± 5.1 yr, mass = 71.2 ± 4.8 kg (mean ± SD)). Both arterially occluded (AO) and nonoccluded (N/O) conditions were investigated. Tissue oxygenation was monitored with a near-infrared spectrometer. Oxygen utilization rate and tissue oxygenation recovery were computed as the slopes of the regression line of the oxygenation decay and recovery, respectively. A fast Fourier transform (FFT) was used to determine the frequency spectrum of the oxygen saturation data. EMG activity was monitored using bipolar EMG electrodes. A windowed root mean square analysis was used to monitor the amplitude of the EMG signal. Results: A statistically significant increase of 15% (P < 0.05) in oxygen utilization rate was found for the vibration condition in the AO leg but not in the N/O leg. The oxygenation recovery rate for the vibration condition was 34% higher (P < 0.05) than that for the control condition. A low-frequency periodic oscillation (T ≈10 s) in the tissue oxygenation data was determined from the FFT spectrum. A statistically significant decrease in the oscillation frequency was noticed for the vibration condition compared with the control. Conclusions: Vibrations increased the oxygen utilization rate during a dynamic exercise. The oxygenation recovery rate increased with vibrations. The low-frequency oscillation of the oxygenation was attributed to the periodic changes in tissue blood flow, and this seems to be influenced by vibrations.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)509-515
Number of pages7
JournalMedicine and science in sports and exercise
Volume43
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2011
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • blood flow
  • exercise
  • oxygen utilization
  • whole-body vibrations

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
  • Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation

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