Comparando limiar de dor de atletas com indivíduos ativos

Abstract

Pain represents an important clinical, social and economic problem with high incidence and prevalence. One of the important long-term benefits of physical activity is reduced pain sensitivity. The pain threshold of athletes and physically active people is suggestively higher when compared to sedentary individuals. In addition, it is believed that the pain threshold of athletes is also higher when compared to non-athlete active individuals due to the fact that athletes are generally resistant and continue their activities even in conditions of pain and severe injuries. However, research is old and inconclusive, which suggests the need for more updated studies on this topic. Therefore, the objective of this study was to carry out a literature review of studies that compare the pain threshold of athletes with active individuals. Our review was performed in Pubmed, Bireme and Pedro databases. Randomized and nonrandomized clinical trials published in the last ten years were included. The search strategies were adapted according to each database, including filters and using the following keywords “athletes”, “pain threshold” and “tolerance”. All studies evaluated pain threshold and pain tolerance and some added questionnaires to assess coping, personality traits, fear of pain, courage, pain catastrophizing, among others. The most used pain measure was conditioned pain modulation (CPM) using the cold pressure test (CPT). Athletes showed better results compared to the non-athlete population in all analyzed studies demonstrating lower pain sensitivity, higher pain threshold and greater pain tolerance. Our data revealed that athletes have a higher pain threshold and greater pain tolerance when compared to active, non-athlete controls, demonstrating that this population is less sensitive to pain.