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Cited by 392Exercise and Physiological ResponsesCardiovascular and exercise physiologyCardiovascular Effects of Exercise

Reduction of the Plasma Concentration of C-Reactive Protein Following Nine Months of Endurance Training

Mattusch, Dufaux, Heine, Mertens, Rost·2000·International Journal of Sports Medicine
DOI 10.1055/s-2000-8852
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Abstract

An intense physical exercise induces an inflammatory reaction as demonstrated by the delayed increase in blood of acute phase proteins and among them of C-reactive protein (CRP). There is also evidence for a diminished acute phase reaction due to regular exercise suggesting a suppression of the inflammatory response through training. With this background CRP was measured by a sensitive enzyme immunoassay under resting conditions before and after 9 months of training in 14 subjects preparing for a marathon with the aim of studying the effect of training on the base-line CRP concentration. The mean distance run per week increased significantly from 31 +/- 9 km at the beginning to 53 +/- 15 km after 8 months of training (p < 0.01). The aerobic capacity rose significantly after training as demonstrated by the increase of running velocity during a maximal treadmill test from 3.82 +/- 0.29 m/s pre-training to 4.17 +/- 0.17 m/s post-training at a blood lactate concentration of 4 mmol/L (p < 0.01). In 10 of 12 runners base-line CRP was diminished after training in spite of a continuous increase of training intensity. The CRP median fell from 1.19 mg/L before to 0.82 mg/L after training (p < 0.05). Since intense physical exercise is known to be associated with an inflammatory reaction of muscles and tendons, the CRP decrease was unexpected. In 2 subjects the CRP concentration rose markedly because of a borrelia infection and a knee injury, respectively. These values were caused by a pathological condition and were not considered for the statistical evaluation. In 10 non-training control subjects the CRP median did not change significantly during the same 9 months period. The decrease of the CRP base-line concentration after training suggests that intensive regular exercise has a systemic anti-inflammatory effect. This is of particular interest with regard to several recent reports confering on the concentration of CRP in plasma a predictive value for the risk of cardiac infarction, venous thrombosis or stroke.

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  • Cross-sectional studies demonstrate an association between physical inactivity and low-grade systemic inflammation in healthy subjects, elderly people, and patients with intermittent claudication.

    “Cross-sectional studies demonstrate an association between physical inactivity and low-grade systemic inflammation in healthy subjects [71–75], in elderly people [76, 77], and in patients with intermittent claudication [78].”

    From Exercise as a Mean to Control Low‐Grade Systemic Inflammation (2008) · cites this paper as [75]

  • Longitudinal studies show that regular training induces a reduction in CRP level, suggesting that physical activity as such may suppress systemic low-grade inflammation.

    “Moreover, the finding in longitudinal studies that regular training induces a reduction in CRP level suggests that the physical activity as such may suppress systemic low-grade inflammation [74, 75, 79, 80].”

    From Exercise as a Mean to Control Low‐Grade Systemic Inflammation (2008) · cites this paper as [75]

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Authors
Mattusch, Dufaux, Heine, Mertens, & Rost
Affiliations
German Sport University Cologne (DE)
Venue
International Journal of Sports Medicine
Publisher
Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Published
2000-01
Volume
21
Issue
1
Pages
21-24
ISSN
  • 0172-4622 (ISSN-L)
  • 1439-3964
DOI
10.1055/s-2000-8852
OpenAlex
W2052205324
Cited by
389
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 14 · 2015: 15 · 2014: 17 · 2013: 15 · 2012: 25
FWCI
8.44
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • International Journal of Sports Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Rehabilitation › Exercise and Physiological Responses
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Effects of Exercise
Keywords
C-reactive protein, endurance training, marathon training, acute phase proteins, cardiorespiratory fitness, running speed, exercise-induced inflammation, cardiovascular risk prediction
MeSH terms
Acute-Phase Reaction, Adult, C-Reactive Protein, Cardiovascular Diseases, Humans, Immunoenzyme Techniques, Inflammation, Male, Physical Endurance, Running, Biomarkers

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