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Table 5 Other physiological measures

From: Is There Evidence for the Development of Sex-Specific Guidelines for Ultramarathon Coaches and Athletes? A Systematic Review

Study

Participants

Measures

Design

Evidence quality

Major findings

Hoffman et al.[45]

216 athletes (40 females and 176 males) aged 42.6 ± 9.4 years who completed a 161 km ultramarathon

Serum CK and sodium

Cross-sectional

Low

No significant sex differences in serum CK. Sex differences in sodium not reported

Speechly et al.[47]

20 athletes (10 females aged 33.6 ± 5.6 years, and 10 males aged 35 ± 8.8 years). Marathon performance-matched pairs signed up to a 90 km road ultramarathon

90 km race time,

V̇O2max,

running economy,

serum glucose, osmolality, FFA

Cohort study

Low

Females had significantly faster average running speed during 90 km ultramarathon than males (171 m/min vs 155.2 m/min, p < 0.05) and sustained a higher fraction of their V̇O2max during the ultramarathon (59.8 ± 6.2% vs 50.2 ± 3.1%, p < 0.01)

Females had significantly lower plasma FFA post-race (p < 0.01). No sex differences in serum glucose, serum osmolality, or running economy

Tirabassi et al.[46]

36 athletes (8 females and 28 males) aged 43 ± 10 years who completed a 100 mile ultramarathon at altitude

Serum liver enzymes, CK, bilirubin

Cohort study

Low

No significant sex differences in biomarkers of liver injury post-race

  1. CK, creatine kinase; V̇O2max, maximal oxygen uptake; and FFA, free fatty acids