Long Course Triathlon, Salivary IgA and Post-Race Illness

Abstract

2190 Intense exercise has been reported to reduce salivary immunoglobin A (sIgA) levels and increase the risk of illness in athletes. Low levels of sIgA have been correlated with an increased incidence of respiratory tract illness resulting in significant decreases in performance. PURPOSE: To assess salivary IgA levels and infection incidence and severity before and after a triathlon. METHODS: Thirty-two triathletes (28 males, 4 females) ages 26–56 yrs (38.2 ± 8.29 yrs) participating in a long course triathlon (3.86km swim, 180.2 km bike & 42.2 km run) provided a timed, un-stimulated saliva sample at 48 or 24 hrs before (PRE) and immediately after (POST) and 24 hrs after (24POST) the race. Salivary IgA concentration was measured by ELISA and IgA secretion rate calculated from a four minute collection (μg/min). During the week following the competition, a subset of athletes (n = 15) reported daily incidence of illness and severity of symptoms. Illness data was reported in daily logs. RESULTS: There were no significant changes in salivary IgA level (PRE = 30.47 ± 11.29 μg/ml, POST = 37.35 ± 20.93μg/ml, p = 0.67) or secretion rate (PRE = 20.784 ± 13.98 μg/min, POST = 19.32 ± 11.1 μg/min, p = 0.572) as a result of competition. There were no significant relationships between sIgA and infection rate or severity. CONCLUSION: These data indicate that a long-course triathlon did not significantly influence sIgA levels.