Systematic Massage on Swimming Athletes Performance

February 19, 2021 updated by: Flávia Carvalho, São Paulo State University

Effects of Systematic Massage Application on Swimming Athletes Performance: a Randomized, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial

Swimming is a sport that includes different styles and distances, which can expose the athlete to different stressors that can affect performance and generate conditions such as overtraining. This is due to the lack of integration of systematic recovery periods during training programs. A very used recuperative feature in swimming is massage. Recent studies have shown that the application of short duration is sufficient to obtain the desired effects and it is possible that its application systematized over a period of time may have greater effects on performance. The aims of this study were to evaluate the effects of deep and superficial massage on clinical, functional and performance issues; to identify its short-term effects on clinical and functional variables and to investigate the association between training load and the swimmer's perceptions.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

The study was composed by a convenience sample of 19 male and female athletes aged between 12 and 20 years old who train regularly (six days a week) and are members of the Prudentina Athletic Sports Association (APEA) swimming team. The research project was accepted by the Research Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the Paulista State University "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" - FCT / UNESP. A single-blinded crossover randomized controlled trial with 1:1:1 allocation. The sample was submitted to a balanced-block randomization, by sorting on Excel, with a balanced sex, age and competitive level ratio, to three sequences of interventions containing: (i) control, (ii) superficial massage and iii) deep massage. The study was conducted over a period of eight weeks, consisting of five sessions of resistance and swimming training. The option for intervention time point was based on a pilot study that yielded higher training loads on on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays and worse perceptions between both training stimuli (resistance and swimming). At the end of each training week, participants were subjected to a maximum test of 100-m front crawl sprint in a semi-olympic indoor pool (25 meters), then we performed a functional evaluation. Training load was monitored over the entire trial by the Session Rating of Perceived Exertion (sRPE) calculated by the product of the training duration and perception of effort. Effects of single massage on perceptive outcomes were analyzed by generalized estimating equations (GEE) with ordinal distribution and cumulative logit link function, using intervention group, training time-points and day of intervention as predictors in the model. The first category (nothing) was used as reference unless otherwise stated. Effects of repeated massage on proprioception was analyzed by GEE and remaining outcomes were analyzed by Generalized Linear Mixed Model, both with Gamma distribution and cumulative logit link function. Bonferroni adjustments were used for all significant main effect. Pearson's test was used to explore the correlation between training load and performance and interpreted as small (0.00-0.25), fair (0.26-0.50), moderate to good (0.51-0.75) and excellent (>0.75).

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
19

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Brazil
    • São Paulo
      • Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, Brazil, 19060-900
        • São Paulo State University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

12 years to 20 years (ADULT, CHILD)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • regular members of the Prudentina Association of Athletic Sports (APEA)
  • between 12 and 20 years old

Exclusion Criteria:

  • not attending the evaluation session

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: OTHER
  • Allocation: RANDOMIZED
  • Interventional Model: CROSSOVER
  • Masking: DOUBLE

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
EXPERIMENTAL: Deep Massage
The deep massage was performed three times during a training week, after a physical training and before the swimming training
Other: Deep Massage
The deep massage group received 12 minutes of massage on the legs, arms and the back with three different sliding pressures.
ACTIVE_COMPARATOR: Superficial Massage
The superficial massage was performed three times during a training week, after a physical training and before the swimming training
Other: Superficial Massage
The superficial massage group received 12 minutes of only one sliding pressure performed on the legs, arms and the back.
NO_INTERVENTION: Control
The control group kept their normal routine of training. Immediately after the physical training the athletes were instructed to wait for 12 minutes (passive recovery) until the beginning of the swim training.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Adjusted Performance
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Technical index (FINA points)
up to 1 week
Performance
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Sprint time (s)
up to 1 week

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Inferior limb power
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Squat jump test (cm)
up to 1 week
Superior limb power
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Bench press test (m/s)
up to 1 week
Flexibility
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Tested by hip flexion measured by the centimeters reached on the Wells bench
up to 1 week
Proprioception
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Laser-pointer assisted angle reproduction test for 55°, 90° and 125° of shoulder flexion
up to 1 week
Perceptions
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Swimmer's Perception of Effort Questionnaire (SPEQ) composed of 5 perceptions (well-being, heaviness, tiredness, discomfort, pain) rated by a 1-5 likert scale where 1=nothing; 2= a little; 3=moderate; 4=a lot; 5=extremely. For well-being higher values indicate better outcomes while for the remaining perceptions higher values indicate worse outcomes
up to 1 week
Swimming velocity
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Swimming velocity (SV) is derived from the central 10m of the pool and the time to swim this distance (t), calculated by the formula SV=10/t.
up to 1 week
Stroke frequency
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Stroke frequency (SF) is derived from the number os strokes (n) and the time to swim the central 10m of the pool (t), calculated by the formula SF=n/t.
up to 1 week
Distance per stroke
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Distance per stroke (DPS) is derived from the swimming velocity and swimming frequency, calculated by the formula DPS=SV/SF.
up to 1 week
Stroke index
Time Frame: up to 1 week
Stroke index (SI) is derived from the swimming velocity and the distance per stroke, calculate from the formula SI=SV*DPS.
up to 1 week

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
São Paulo State University

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Carlos M Pastre, doctor, Universidade Estadual Paulista Julio de Mesquita Filho

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (ACTUAL)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
March 25, 2019

Primary Completion (ACTUAL)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 18, 2019

Study Completion (ACTUAL)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 18, 2019

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
March 19, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 20, 2019

First Posted (ACTUAL)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
March 22, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 23, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 19, 2021

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2018/09680-8

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

The individual participant data will not be shared because they belong to a competitive team and most of the participants have less than 18 years old

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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