Heat Stress in Wheelchair Sports

A spinal cord injury leads to several physiological changes and complications, which might influence exercise performance (Perret and Abel, 2016). One major problem is the limited thermoregulation, especially in subjects suffering from a tetraplegia (Griggs et al., 2015; Price et al., 2006). There are only few studies, which investigated the thermoregulatory response during real life conditions in wheelchair athletes such as during a wheelchair rugby match (Griggs et al., 2017). However, to implement strategies to reduce heat stress (e.g. precooling methods) or to determine the influence of heat stress on exercise performance and to determine the effects of specific interventions the following two issues seem to be a prerequisite: First of all, we need to understand, which thermoregulatory response is induced under real life conditions, e.g. by a wheelchair rugby or basketball match. Second, if we want to study the effects of potential interventions, a standardised and reliable study protocol has to be available, which closely mimics match conditions and induces a similar amount of heat stress. Thus, the aim of the study is to measure thermoregulatory and physical performance outcomes during a real life wheelchair rugby and basketball match. A further goal is to develop and validate a standardised field-based protocol, which induces a similar thermoregulatory response as during a wheelchair rugby or basketball match. These knowledge builds the basis for future thermoregulatory studies based on a reliable and standardised field-based testing protocol.