Early Treatment Of Exercise Induced Muscle Damage With Meloxicam Affects Muscle Cell Membrane Permeability

Abstract

Exercise induced muscle damage occurs after unaccustomed physical activity, resulting in stiff, painful muscles with impaired function. Conventional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents are often ingested prior to, or after exercise to treat these symptoms. PURPOSE To determine the effects of the cox-2 selective agent meloxicam (M), on symptoms of exercise induced muscle damage and plasma creatine kinase [CK] activity. METHODS: Forty five healthy males were recruited for a double-blind placebo controlled trial and were then randomly assigned to treatment with either M 15mg immediately before (ME) or 48 hrs after induced injury (ML) or a placebo (P) and monitored for a total of 168 hours. Muscle injury was induced in their non-dominant arms using an eccentric exercise protocol. The dominant arm, which did not do any exercise was the control. RESULTS Subjects in all three groups experienced severe pain (2.5 +2.2 units; 2.3 + 2.1 units; 2.4+2.5 units vs. control P < 0.001) following the eccentric exercise. After 24 hours the difference in elbow joint angle between control and exercised arm, of all three groups had increased significantly (7.0 + 6.5°; 4.3 + 3.4°; 2.7 +2.7°; ME, ML and P; P <0.05), possibly as a consequence of elbow flexor muscles shortening. Peak [CK] was higher at 72 hr in ME (2540 +4230 U.L−1) compared to ML (671 + 953 U.L−1) and P (675 + 1002 U.L−1; P < 0.05 vs pre exercise control). M was well tolerated by the subjects in both groups without any adverse effects. CONCLUSIONS These data show that symptoms of exercise induced skeletal muscle damage are not positively influenced by ME or ML. Indeed, it appears that ingestion of M immediately preceding injury seems to affect muscle cell membrane permeability resulting in higher peak [CK]. These findings have important implications to athletes who ingest anti-inflammatory agents before exercising in an attempt to decrease skeletal muscle injury.