Background: Cryotherapy has been widely used for post-exercise recovery for decades. Whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) is a technique that involves brief exposure to extremely cold temperatures to produce therapeutic effects. Its effectiveness in treating exercise-induced impairments is currently under investigation.
Purpose: This systematic review aims to assess whether WBC is more, less, or equally effective compared to other recovery interventions in reducing perceived muscle soreness and restoring muscle function after exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) in runners.
Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted using the following MeSH terms: cryotherapy, whole-body cryotherapy, exercise-induced muscle damage, muscle soreness, muscle recovery, and running. The databases searched included PubMed, CINAHL, EBSCO Host, and Google Scholar. Articles were included if they were published in the last 10 years, had a level of evidence of IIb or higher according to the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (CEBM), a PEDro scale score of at least 5, focused on runners, and assessed both perceived muscle soreness and muscle function recovery. Studies were excluded if they did not involve runners, used partial-body cryotherapy (PBC) instead of WBC, or failed to measure both muscle performance and perceived soreness.
Results: Among the four studies analyzed:
- Two studies found WBC significantly more effective than other interventions, such as far-infrared radiation and passive recovery, in reducing muscle soreness and restoring muscle power and endurance following simulated trail runs and high-intensity interval running.
- One study reported no significant difference between WBC and passive recovery in reducing muscle soreness and restoring muscle power after sprint intervals.
- One study indicated that WBC had a negative impact compared to cold water immersion (CWI) and passive recovery, worsening both muscle soreness and muscle strength recovery after a marathon.
Conclusion: The findings were inconclusive regarding WBC’s effectiveness in treating exercise-induced muscle damage in runners compared to other recovery methods. However, WBC appears to have a time-dependent positive effect on muscle recovery, particularly after high-intensity interval and endurance running—though this benefit does not extend to marathon recovery. Further research is necessary to establish optimal WBC treatment protocols, including temperature, timing, duration, and frequency.
Citation: Kasior, I. et al., (2025). Comparison of Whole-Body Cryotherapy and Other Recovery Methods for Muscle Function and Soreness in Runners. J Nurs Care Repo; 6(2):1-9. DOI : https://doi.org/10.47485/3065-7636.1038