Avaliação dos níveis de força muscular em diferentes fases do ciclo menstrual

Abstract

Introduction: Female physiology is protected by a set of hormonal oscillations that characterize the menstrual cycle. Hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle present high concentrations of estrogen and progesterone in the follicular phase, high concentrations of estrogen and progesterone in the ovulatory phase, and high concentrations of estrogen and progesterone in the luteal phase. Such hormonal changes caused by the menstrual cycle can alter muscle strength, and physical training can also generate changes in the menstrual cycle (GUYTON; HALL, 2002). Objectives: to investigate the behavior of muscle strength during the follicular, ovulatory and luteal phases of women using and not using contraceptives. Materials and Methods: This is an experimental descriptive study, with a quantitative approach, in which the convenience sample consisted of 8 women who practice resistance exercise. The sample was divided into two groups, with 4 users of contraceptives and 4 non-users. These were assessments of handgrip strength according to the menstrual cycle in the follicular, ovulatory and luteal phases. Results: When evaluating the level of handgrip strength of the volunteers, regardless of the use of oral contraceptives, in the follicular, ovulatory and luteal phases, no differences were found in any of the phases (p=0.983). When evaluating the strengths of women who use contraceptives, it was observed that there was an increase in the ovulatory and luteal phases, in relation to the follicular phase, but without significant differences (p=0.983). The same was repeated in the group of women who did not use contraceptives (p=0.882). When comparing the strength levels of women using and not using contraceptives, we observed that the level of handgrip strength was higher in the group of women not using contraceptives. However, there was no significant difference between the phases. NU.FF/UA.FF (p- value=0.962), NU.FO/UA.FO (p-value=0.343), NU.FL/UAFL (p-value=0.430). Conclusion: for this study population, there was no change in handgrip strength in the different phases of the menstrual cycle of women users and non-users of contraceptives, although there was a trend towards a higher level of strength in the group of women not users of contraceptives. Keywords: muscle strength; menstrual cycle; hormonal changes.