EFFECT OF ICE BAG, DYNAMIC STRETCHING AND COMBINED TREATMENTS ON THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF DELAY ONSET MUSCLE SORENESS

Objective: To investigate the effects of ice bag, dynamic stretching, combined ice and dynamic stretching, and control (non-treated) on the prevention and treatment of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) in biceps muscle. Subjects: Fifty-five participants (aged 18 to 25 years) were engaged in this study and randomly assigned into four groups (control group (non-treated) (CG), n = 13; ice bag, n = 14; dynamic stretching, n = 14; and combined treatment, n = 14). Method: Before inducing DOMS, the range of motion (ROM) and maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) were measured. The dynamic stretching was performed before inducing DOMS. Subjects performed biceps eccentric exercise at 110% of the predicted one-repetition maximum (1-RM), for each subject, to induce muscle soreness. Pain, ROM and MVC were assessed at 0, 24, 48, 72, and 96 hours after induction of DOMS. Results: These non-significant results for mode of treatment and time interaction showed that combined treatment, ice bag, or dynamic stretching alone is not effective at significantly reducing the symptoms of DOMS. Conclusion: These results are non-significant, the pattern of the data showed that the combined treatment may be contraindicated in the prevention of DOMS and ice bag or dynamic stretching might be the best choice of treatment. Further investigation is strongly recommended.