Hematologic and Biochemical Profile of Juvenile and Adult Athletes of Both Sexes: Implications for Clinical Evaluation

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to compare the values of seventeen hematologic and biochemical parameters between juvenile and adult athletes and non-athletes of both sexes. 579 athletes and 241 non-athletes participated in the study. We measured packed-cell volume, hemoglobin, red blood cell count, white blood cell count, platelet count, iron, glucose, urea, triacylglycerols, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, calcium, magnesium, creatine kinase, as well as alanine and aspartate aminotransferases. We found significant differences according to age, sex, and physical activity in the majority of the parameters. The effect size of physical activity on most parameters was small (< 0.5); however, that on packed-cell volume, glucose, urea, calcium, magnesium, and creatine kinase was moderate to high (0.5 to 0.8). It is remarkable that three of the highest effect sizes of physical activity appeared on parameters thought to be under tight homeostatic control (i. e., glucose, calcium, and magnesium). We conclude that physical training influences most of the biochemical parameters routinely measured in athletes, although, in some cases, its effect appears to be of limited biological importance. Therefore, clinical assessment on the basis of blood tests has to take into account not only the age and sex, but also the training status of individuals.

Adolescents - biochemical monitoring - exercise - females - males

References

• 1 Bain B J. Ethnic and sex differences in the total and differential white cell count and platelet count.  J Clin Pathol. 1996;  49 664-666
• 2 Bates C J, Thurnham D I, Bingham S A, Margetts B M, Nelson M. Biochemical markers of nutrient intake. In: Margetts BM, Nelson M (eds) Design Concepts in Nutritional Epidemiology. New York; Oxford University Press 1997: ;170-240
• 3 Casoni I, Guglielmini C, Graziano L, Reali M G, Mazzotta D, Abbasciano V. Changes of magnesium concentrations in endurance athletes.  Int J Sports Med. 1990;  11 234-237
• 4 Crespo R, Relea P, Lozano D, Macarro-Sanchez M, Usabiaga J, Villa L F, Rico H. Biochemical markers of nutrition in elite-marathon runners.  J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 1995;  35 268-272
• 5 Durstine J L, Grandjean P W, Davis P G, Ferguson M A, Alderson N L, DuBose K D. Blood lipid and lipoprotein adaptations to exercise: a quantitative analysis.  Sports Med. 2001;  31 1033-1062
• 6 Flegar-Mestric Z, Nazor A, Jagarinec N. Haematological profile in healthy urban population (8 to 70 years of age).  Coll Antropol. 2000;  24 185-196
• 7 Gräsbeck R, Siest G, Wilding P, Williams G Z, Whitehead T P. Provisional recommendation on the theory of reference values.  Clin Chem. 1978;  25 1506-1508
• 8 Haden S T, Brown E M, Hurwitz S, Scott J, El-Hajj Fuleihan G. The effects of age and gender on parathyroid hormone dynamics.  Clin Endocrinol. 2000;  52 329-338
• 9 Hartmann U, Mester J. Training and overtraining markers in selected sport events.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2000;  32 209-215
• 10 Kabata J, Raszeja-Specht A, Steffek I, Angielski S. Reference values for peripheral blood morphology in countryside population of northern Poland.  Pol Tyg Lek. 1995;  50 62-65
• 11 Karlsson M K, Vergnaud P, Delmas P D, Obrant K J. Indicators of bone formation in weight lifters.  Calcif Tissue Int. 1995;  56 177-180
• 12 Le Blanc J, Tremblay A, Richard D, Nadeau A. Daily variations of plasma glucose and insulin in physically-trained and sedentary subjects.  Metabolism. 1983;  32 552-557
• 13 Malczewska J, Raczynski G, Stupnicki R. Iron status in female endurance athletes and in non-athletes.  Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2000;  10 260-276
• 14 Noakes T D. Effect of exercise on serum enzyme activities in humans.  Sports Med. 1987;  4 245-267
• 15 Nuviala R J, Lapieza M G, Bernal E. Magnesium, zinc, and copper status in women involved in different sports.  Int J Sport Nutr. 1999;  9 295-309
• 16 Polancic J E. Electrolytes. In: Bishop ML, Duben-Engelkirk JL, Fody EP (eds) Clinical Chemistry. Principles, Procedures, Correlations. Philadelphia; Lippincott Williams and Wilkins 2000: ;294-321
• 17 Raastad T, Hallén J. Recovery of skeletal muscle contractility after high- and moderate-intensity strength exercise.  Eur J Appl Physiol. 2000;  82 206-214
• 18 Ricci G, Masotti M, de Paoli Vitali E, Vedovato M, Zanotti G. Effects of exercise on haematologic parameters, serum iron, serum ferritin, red cell 2,3-diphosphoglycerate and creatine contents, and serum erythropoietin in long-distance runners during basal training.  Acta Haematol. 1988;  80 95-98
• 19 Rotenberg Z, Seip R, Wolfe L A, Bruns D E. “Flipped” patterns of lactate dehydrogenase isoenzymes in serum of elite college basketball players.  Clin Chem. 1988;  34 2351-2354
• 20 Sakurada K, Tanaka J. Sport-anemia: studies on hematological status in high school boy athletes.  Rinsho Byori. 1996;  44 616-621
• 21 Singh A, Deuster P A, Day B A, Moser-Veillon P B. Dietary intakes and biochemical markers of selected minerals: comparison of highly trained runners and untrained women.  J Am Coll Nutr. 1990;  9 65-75
• 22 Taylor M R, Holland C V, Spencer R, Jackson J F, O’Connor G I, O’Donnell J R. Haematological reference ranges for schoolchildren.  Clin Lab Haematol. 1997;  19 1-15
• 23 Telford R D, Cunningham R B. Sex, sport, and body-size dependency of hematology in highly trained athletes.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1991;  23 788-794
• 24 Tietz N W. Clinical Guide to Laboratory Tests. Philadelphia; Saunders 1995
• 25 Tolfrey K, Jones A M, Campbell I G. The effect of aerobic exercise training on the lipid-lipoprotein profile of children and adolescents.  Sports Med. 2000;  29 99-112
• 26 Watts E. Athletes’ anaemia. A review of possible causes and guidelines on investigation.  Br J Sports Med. 1989;  23 81-83
• 27 Weight L M, Klein M, Noakes T D, Jacobs P. “Sports anemia” - a real or apparent phenomenon in endurance-trained athletes.   Int J Sports Med. 1992;  13 344-347