An interventional study of Cold Therapy with Axanova Cold Hot Pearls Maxi Pack in Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), Inflammation and Muscle Pain, sponsored by University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland. Completed at 1 site in Switzerland. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 30 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-03-04.
Sponsored by University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if applying cold therapy can reduce swelling, inflammation, and pain after physical activity in adults who experience muscle soreness (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, or DOMS). The main questions it aims to answer are:
Researchers will compare participants using the Axanova Cold Hot Pearls Maxi Pack to those not receiving any cold therapy to see if the cold application improves recovery outcomes.
Participants will:
The study aims to provide new insights into the effectiveness of cold therapy for muscle recovery, focusing on pain relief, reduced swelling, and improved recovery time.
Physical activity is influenced by factors such as the type, duration, and intensity. Depending on the extent of these factors and the associated recovery time, muscle damage, inflammation, and fatigue symptoms in the nervous system can occur. Additionally, energy substrate depletion and localized swelling may take place. Therefore, rapid recovery after intense exercise has become increasingly important. According to the meta-analysis by Bleakley et al. (2012), cold therapy is considered one of the most effective recovery methods after physical activity to delay Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS).
DOMS consists of microscopic tears in muscle tissue, referred to as exercise-induced muscle damage, which can lead to delayed muscle soreness. DOMS typically peaks between 24 and 48 hours-sometimes up to 72 hours-after exercise and is characterized by muscle shortening, increased passive stiffness, swelling, reduced strength and performance, localized muscle soreness, and altered proprioception.
The physiological basis of cryotherapy lies in the removal of body heat through a reduction in tissue temperature. This results in decreased muscle pain perception, making the body feel more "awake" after training and reducing the sensation of fatigue. Additionally, cold exposure lowers heart rate and cardiac output while inducing vasoconstriction. The outcomes include smaller blood vessel diameters, reduced occurrence of edema, and improved oxygen supply to the cells. To maintain core body temperature, the central metabolism also increases, promoting the transport of metabolic waste products.
All these effects, in combination, may help reduce exercise-induced inflammation by minimizing the death or damage of hypoxic cells and reducing secondary tissue damage through decreased infiltration of leukocytes and monocytes (Bleakley et al. 2012, Hohenauer et al. 2015, Hubbard et al. 2004, Ostrowski et al. 2018).
256 studies on the registry are indexed under Myalgia; 46 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 48 is close to the median of 44 across 216 interventional studies indexed under Myalgia.
Browse Myalgia studies →University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland is the lead sponsor of 13 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.
Compared within Myalgia, this study's primary condition as ClinicalTrials.gg classifies it; the registry's first condition term is Inflammation. The counts are of registry records indexed under each term, refreshed daily. How we classify →
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Exclusion Criteria
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Ways of preventing pregnancy. “Highly effective” methods fail less than 1% of the time a year when used correctly — for example an IUD or an implant.
Criteria usually say which methods count and how long to keep using them after the last dose, sometimes for male participants too. Some studies accept a partner’s vasectomy if it was confirmed successful and that person is the participant’s only sexual partner.
Contraception
Ways of preventing pregnancy. “Highly effective” methods fail less than 1% of the time a year when used correctly — for example an IUD or an implant.
Criteria usually say which methods count and how long to keep using them after the last dose, sometimes for male participants too. Some studies accept a partner’s vasectomy if it was confirmed successful and that person is the participant’s only sexual partner.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
In this group, cooling begins immediately after completing the muscle soreness protocol. Cooling is performed three times per day on the day of the protocol and continues for 72 hours. Both thighs are cooled using the "Cold Hot Maxi Pack" from Axanova for 20 minutes per session.
Device: Cold Therapy with Axanova Cold Hot Pearls Maxi Pack
In this group, cooling begins 24 hours after completing the muscle soreness protocol. Cooling is also performed three times per day for 72 hours. Both thighs are cooled using the "Cold Hot Maxi Pack" from Axanova for 20 minutes per session.
Device: Cold Therapy with Axanova Cold Hot Pearls Maxi Pack
This group receives no cooling intervention or any other intervention after the muscle soreness protocol and throughout the study period.
This intervention involves the application of the Axanova Cold Hot Pearls Maxi Pack, a cooling device designed to provide targeted cold therapy. The device will be used to cool both thighs for 20-minute sessions, three times per day, following a muscle soreness protocol. The cold therapy aims to reduce inflammation, swelling, and muscle pain associated with Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). The intervention begins immediately after completing the muscle soreness protocol in Group A, and 24 hours later in Group B. Participants will receive cooling treatment for a total of 72 hours, with temperature and duration carefully monitored to ensure effective cooling.
Reduction in Muscle Pain (DOMS)
Assessed using a visual analog scale (VAS) to measure self-reported muscle soreness in the thighs over 72 hours.
Time frame: 72 hours
Reduction in Swelling
Swelling of the anterior thigh muscles will be assessed using ultrasound diagnostics. A cross-sectional image of the thigh muscles will be captured, and the distance from the femur to the outer boundary of the muscle will be measured.
Time frame: 72 hours
Inflammatory Marker Levels
Blood samples will be taken in order for markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and creatine kinase (CK) levels to be analyzed.
Time frame: 72 hours
PDFs hosted by the registry, ClinicalTrials.gov.
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This study is completed, as verified in Mar 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland