Osteoarthritis subjects have differentiated lower extremity thermal skin response after the concurrent acute training session

Abstract

This study investigated the thermal skin (Tsk) response of lower limbs in older adults with or without osteoarthritis before and after a concurrent exercise. For this, seventy older adults (age: 75.1 ± 6.7 years, mass: 70.5 ± 9.3 kg, height: 1.6 ± 0.1 m, BMI: 29 ± 3.4 kg m−2) were divided into four groups: men with osteoarthritis (n = 7), men control (n = 17), women with osteoarthritis (n = 13) and women control (n = 33). The Tsk was measured by infrared thermography before and after a concurrent training session. The main results indicated that men with osteoarthritis showed a higher Tsk in the anterior and posterior thigh before exercise than the control group (p < 0.05), but there was a significant decrease after exercise in both the anterior thigh (Δ − 1.1 ± 1.0 and Δ − 1.6 ± 1.5 °C right and left, respectively) and posterior thigh (Δ − 1.3 ± 1.5 and Δ − 1.6 ± 2.0 °C right and left, respectively). Similar results were observed in women (p < 0.05) in the posterior thigh (Δ − 0.6 ± 1.0 and Δ − 0.6 ± 0.9 °C right and left, respectively) and anterior leg (p < 0.05, Δ − 0.6 ± 0.9 and Δ − 0.6 ± 0.8 °C right and left, respectively). Men with osteoarthritis had a lower pre-exercise Tsk in their knees (− 0.7 ± 0.9 and 0.5 ± 1.2 °C for right and left knees, respectively) compared to the control. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) after exercise (Δ + 1.8 ± 2.0 and Δ + 2.1 ± 2.2 °C for right and left knees, respectively). In conclusion, older adults with osteoarthritis presented a higher Tsk in the thigh before exercise than the control groups, while decreases occurred in this ROI after exercise. The osteoarthritis group presented a lower Tsk in their knees; however, the exercised knee was significantly warmer after exercise.