Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the morphology of growth plates (GP) in young rats submitted to high and medium-intensity physical exercise.
Methods: The sample consisted of 24 Wistar rats divided into 3 groups: untrained controls (RC), high-intensity physical exercise (R1), and medium-intensity physical exercise (R2). A weight-adjusted ladder training protocol was adopted (five times a week for 4 weeks). Histomorphometric analysis of the GP of the right tibia was performed in a longitudinal section after staining with hematoxylin-eosin and Gomori's trichrome, in addition to cell counts and GP thickness measurements. One-way ANOVA and Tukey's post-test (α < 0.05) were used to analyze the means.
Results: The GP presented inferior thickness and chondrocyte counts in the group that underwent high-intensity physical training (355.5 μm and 1157.3) compared to the control (407.6 μm and 1329.7) and medium-intensity groups (312.4 μm and 1328.5).
Conclusion: High and medium-intensity training promoted a reduction in the GP of young rats compared to the control group. Therefore, ladder training protocols may anticipate GP closure in young rats, thus impairing tibial length in these animals.
Author keywords: Growth Plate; Physical Exercise; Rats
This abstract is reproduced with the permission of the publisher; full text is available by subscription. Click on the above link and select a publisher from PubMed's LinkOut feature.
|
