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Central fatigue explains sex differences in muscle fatigue and contralateral cross-over effects of maximal contractions

  • Central Nervous System
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Abstract

A sustained voluntary contraction increases central fatigue and produces a ‘cross-over’ of fatigue during a subsequent contraction of the contralateral limb. These studies compared the magnitude of these changes for men and women. Force and electromyographic responses from dominant (study 1; n = 8 men, 8 women) or non-dominant (study 2; n = 7 men, 8 women) leg extensors to nerve stimulation were recorded at rest and during brief maximal voluntary contractions (MVCs), before and after 100-s sustained MVCs performed with the dominant leg. For the dominant leg, force was reduced more for men (by ∼24%) than women (by ∼16%, P < 0.05) after the sustained contractions. Similarly, voluntary activation during these contractions was reduced more for men (by ∼22%) than women (by ∼9%, P < 0.05). Conversely, resting twitches changed similarly for both sexes (P > 0.05). For the non-dominant leg, men experienced a reduction in force (by ∼13%, P < 0.001) and had greater deficits in activation than women (∼9% vs ∼3%, P < 0.05), after sustained contractions of the dominant leg. Therefore, sustained MVCs produce greater central fatigue and a more pronounced ‘cross-over’ of effects to the contralateral limb for men compared to women. These findings demonstrate distinct differences between sexes in the way the nervous system adapts to changes associated with fatigue.

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Acknowledgment

We are grateful to Dr. Janet Taylor for comments on the manuscript and Assoc. Prof. Frank Marino and Dr. Derek Kay for initial discussions concerning this work. Our thanks also to Dr. Jack Cannon for excellent technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Exercise and Sports Science Laboratories, School of Human Movement Studies, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, Australia

    Peter G. Martin & Jodie Rattey

  2. Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute, University of New South Wales, Barker Street, Randwick, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia

    Peter G. Martin

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  1. Peter G. Martin
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Correspondence to Peter G. Martin.

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Martin, P.G., Rattey, J. Central fatigue explains sex differences in muscle fatigue and contralateral cross-over effects of maximal contractions. Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol 454, 957–969 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-007-0243-1

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