Table 1.
Immunoglobulin A (IgA) responses considering repeated sprint ability and treadmill exercises as a stressor during intensive or non-intensive fixture schedules.
| Ref. | Sample | Stressor | Immunology (IgA) | URTS/URTI Relationship | Lesson Learned and Concluding Remarks | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Int. Fix. Schedule | Test | Volume | Intensity | Salivary Test | Outcomes | ||||
| Rodrigues de Araujo et al. [23] | 32 male professionals | No | HIIE [39] | 7 × 40 m sprint with 25 s between each of them | Sprint | Post exercise (Immediately) | Unaltered in spite of its exhaustive characteristics | - | HIIE tests could be conducted without short-term immunosuppression risks |
| Sari-Sarraf et al. [26] | 8 males not professionals | No | Soccer-specific intermittent [24] and continuous exercise | Intermittent exercise: 6 periods of 15 min. Continuous exercise: 2 periods of 45 min. |
Exercise at the same average work-rate: Continuous: 141 HR/min; RPE: 10.8; Vel: 9.7 km/h. Intermittent: 142 HR/min; RPE: 11.9; Velocity: different intensities. |
The week prior to commencement of exercise. -Before, at half-time, immediately post-exercise. -6 h, 24 h, and 48 h post-exercise. |
Mean saliva concentration of IgA was unaffected either by both intermittent and continuous exercise. | - | Soccer-specific intermittent exercise did not suppress the sIgA compared to continuous exercise (with the same overall work rate), although there with not significant differences founds. |
| Sari-Sarraf et al. [27] | 10 males non-professionals |
Yes | Two trials of soccer-specific intermittent exercise [24]: -Single session. -Double session. |
-Single session at 14:30 h. -Double session in 1 day at 10:30 (1st training) and 14:30 (2nd training). |
Intermittent exercise | -Before and immediately after exercise. | Single session: sIgA level increased significantly immediately post-exercise. -Double session: it does not appear a suppression of salivary IgA outcomes. |
- | Two 90 min exercise sessions performed at a moderate intensity with a 2.25 h rest between them, do not necessarily have adverse effects on sIgA. |
| Sari-Sarraf et al. [28] | 9 males amateur |
Yes | 2 trials of intermittent exercise 48 h apart on a motorized treadmill [24] | 6 periods of 15 min. 15 min of rest between 3–4 periods. | Increasing exercise intensities (standing, walking, jogging, cruising and sprinting). | -Before 2 exercise trials. -Immediately after 2 exercise trials. -After 24 and 48 h following the 2 exercise trials. |
-SIgA concentration was increased significantly immediately after both exercise trials and returned to pre-exercise levels 24 h later. -Although not statistically significant, there was a progressive decrease in resting SIgA concentration from exercise 1 to pre-exercise 2 (48 h after exercise 1) and to 48 h after exercise 2. |
- | 2 bouts of intermittent exercise with 48 h between sessions were not sufficiently stressful to induce compromises in s-IgA responses. The trend for a progressive reduction in resting sIgA observed 48 h after each exercise session has clinical relevance is unclear. |
| Page et al. [25] | 10 male semi-professionals | Yes | Short-term soccer-specific fixture congestion [24]. | Six × 15-min bouts of intermittent activity, with a 15-min rest between 3rd and 4th 3 bouts in 5 days with 48 h between them. |
High intensity activity interspersed with periods of low intensity passive and activity recovery. | Two times: -at rest. -Immediately after each trial. |
No significant main effects for time or trial, and no significant interactions were identified for the sIgA data. | - | A period of short-term fixture congestion did not show a significant cumulative or residual fatigue response across successive bouts. |
HIIE: high-intensity interval exercise; HR: heart rate; IgA: Immunoglobulin A; RPE: respiratory perceived exertion; sIgA: salivary immunoglobulin A; URTI: upper respiratory tract infection; URTS: upper respiratory tract symptoms.