Cryotherapy

Background: We examined the effectiveness of the systemic cryotherapy in terms of the temperature and duration of the therapeutic series measured by oxidative stress markers in the rat animal model.

Methods: Antioxidants in serum, plasma, liver, and erythrocytes were evaluated in two study groups following 1 min exposure to - 60°C and - 90°C, for 5 and 10 days.

Results: Superoxide dismutase activity in the tissues was lower than in the serum. The glutathione peroxidase was significantly higher in - 60°C than in - 90°C, in both 5 and 10 days of exposition. The liver catalase CAT were significantly lower in - 60°C when compared to - 90°C for 5 and 10 sessions of exposure. In all analysed tissues, the sessions of cryotherapy, - 60/5 and - 60/10, were more effective in reduction malondialdehydethan sessions of - 90/5 and - 90/10. The highest total antioxidant capacity was observed in the - 60/5 group.

Conclusions: Whole body cryotherapy based on temperature - 60°C may be considered as more beneficial than - 90°C for most of the oxidative stress (OS) markers measured in the selected tissues. The temp. - 60°C is more beneficial than - 90°C when measured by activity of Total SOD, CAT, and GPx. The therapeutic sessions - 60/10 and - 60/5 were the optimal schemes of WBC model in terms of TAC and MDA amount.