Influence of biological maturation on cardiac autonomic recovery in female volleyball players during & after repeated sprints training: An experimental trial

Abstract

Previously, it was suggested that biological maturation (BM) could be linked to cardiac autonomic recovery (CAR) in the pediatric population. However, this influence hasn’t been confirmed yet. Our aim was to investigate the impact of BM on CAR in female volleyball players. Experimental study with a sample of 38 volleyball players, comprising 20 girls (age: [11.6 ​± ​2.1] years) and 18 women (age: [24.5 ​± ​5.5] years), we analyzed BM, comparing maturing subjects (girls) with mature subjects (women). Additionally, we assessed peak height velocity (PHV) in girls. We conducted a training session involving repeated sprints (3 rounds of 6 sprints interspersed by 5 ​min [min] of passive rest). Using short-range radio telemetry, we analyzed CAR during (at the end of the 1^st and 2^nd rounds) and after (following the 3^rd round) the training session of repeated sprints by applying the 60-s to 300-s heart rate recovery index (HRR-Index). Girls exhibited superior CAR compared to women (round 2: 60-s, 120-s, 240-s, and 300-s, p ​< ​0.005). Subgroup analyses of BM indicated that individuals in the Late-PHV stage demonstrated superior CAR compared to those in the Early-PHV and During-PHV groups. (60-s to 300-s, η²p ​> ​0.4, p ​< ​0.05). Subjects in the During-PHV stage were superior to those in the Early-PHV stage (240-s á 300-s, η² p ​> ​0.4, p ​< ​0.05). We have concluded that biological maturation has a significant impact on cardiac autonomic recovery.

eywords Exercise; Sport; Volleyball; Heart rate; Pediatric

Key-points

1.This study provides crucial information for prescribing recovery periods during training for pediatric volleyball players, particularly in high-intensity training like repeated sprinting (RST).

2.The present study has identified that cardiac autonomic recovery during and after RST appears to be dependent on biological maturation in female pediatric volleyball players. Furthermore, we offer reference values for the minimum and maximum recovery periods for each stage of biological maturation.

Authors’ contributions

Paulo Almeida-Neto & Fernanda de Oliveira: Conception of the initial idea, elaboration of the study protocols, interpretation of results, writing and final validation of the manuscript. Matheus Rocha: Recruitment of the sample, responsible for data collection regarding cardiac autonomic recovery, writing and final validation of the manuscript. Marcondes Júnior & Júlio Alves: Assisting in data collection, writing and final validation of the manuscript. Iago Medeiros & Felipe Rocha: Application of the repeated sprints protocol, responsible for operating the photocell kit during data collection, writing and final validation of the manuscript. Paulo Dantas: Project supervision, data analysis/interpretation, and drafting of the article. Breno Cabral: Concept/design, project supervision, data collection, drafting of the article, and critical revision of the article.

Funding

This research received no external funding.

Ethical approval statement

This study has the approval of the Ethical Committee of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (#5.792.835/2022) in Rio Grande do Norte state, Brazil. All participants and their respective guardians (in the case of minors) were introduced to all research procedures and those who agreed to participate in the research signed the informed consent form (assent - in the case of children and adolescents). The protocol of the present study was registered a priori and is publicly available on the Open Science Framework Registries platform (DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/53PBV).

Data availability

The database for this study is publicly available at: https://figshare.com, under the DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.22155359.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgments

For your support and encouragement for the development of this academic article, we thank the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), the Physical Activity and Health (AFISA) research base, the Child and Adolescent Maturation Research Group (GEPMAC). The National Council for Scientific Development (CNPQ) and the Higher Education Personnel Improvement Coordination (CAPES). Last but not least we are grateful to the researchers Ayrton Ferreira (ORCID: 0000-0002-0319-3931) and Victor de Queiros (ORCID: 0000-0003-4117-0295) for the support provided during the production of this study.

Special issue articles

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