ArticlePloS one2018
MRI reveals menstrually-related muscle edema that negatively affects athletic agility in young women.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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11 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Standardizing quantitative muscle MRI: an inter-vendor evaluation in healthy adults.Magma (New York, N.Y.) · 2026Article
- Neuromuscular Control and Motor Performance Across the Menstrual Cycle in Physically Active Young Females.European journal of sport science · 2026Article
- Menstrual Cycle and Hormonal Contraceptives in Female Athletes: Should Symptoms and Nutrition Matter More than Cycle Phase? A Narrative Review.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Prevalence of premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder among highly trained and elite female athletes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Biology of sport · 2025Review
- Acute changes in diffusion tensor imaging parameters of the quadriceps femoris muscle after stretching and their relationship with intramuscular adipose tissue.European journal of applied physiology · 2025Article
- The relationship between training and competition load characteristics of female boxers-a case study based on collegiate boxers.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Response to: Dealing with menstrual cycle in sport: stop finding excuses to exclude women from research.European journal of applied physiology · 2022Article
- Effects of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Fluid Regulation during Walking Exercise.Journal of sports science & medicine · 2020Article
- Anthropometric Measures and Prediction of Maternal Sleep-Disordered Breathing.Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine · 2019Article
- Assessment of Salivary Nitric Oxide Levels in Elite University Athletes in Japan: Findings From a Cross Sectional Study Design.Journal of clinical medicine research · 2019Article
- Risk of female athlete triad development in Japanese collegiate athletes is related to sport type and competitive level.International journal of women's health · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
contextAbout 10% of Japanese female athletes are afflicted by menstrually-related edema, mainly in the lower limbs, and, with few studies on this problem, the effect on performance remains unclear.
objectiveTo quantitatively evaluate fluid retention in the calf in female students over their menstrual cycle using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to determine the relationship of MRI changes and athletic performance.
designThe menstrual cycle was divided into 5 phases: menstrual, follicular, ovulatory, early luteal, and late luteal with sampling done in either morning (AM) or afternoon (PM) sessions. At each phase, MRI of the calf (7:00-8:00, 14:00-16:00), body composition and hormones (7:00-8:00), and athletic performance (14:00-16:00) were evaluated.
participants13 adult healthy Japanese female students with eumenorrhea.
resultsEstradiol levels decreased significantly in the menstrual phase and the follicular phase compared to the early luteal phase (P = 0.001, P = 0.024 respectively). Menstrual phase estradiol levels were significantly lower compared to the ovulatory phase (P = 0.015), and the late luteal phase (P = 0.003). Progesterone levels decreased significantly in the menstrual phase and the follicular phase compared to the ovulatory phase (P = 0.012, P = 0.009 respectively), the early luteal phase (both P = 0.007), and the late luteal phase (P = 0.028, P = 0.029 respectively), and it along with a significant decrease in the ovulatory phase compared to the early luteal phase (P = 0.010). AM T2 signals were significantly lower in the menstrual phase compared to the ovulatory phase (P = 0.043) but not other phases. PM T2 signals increased significantly in the menstrual phase compared to the follicular phase (P = 0.003), ovulatory phase (P = 0.009), and the late luteal phase (P = 0.032), and the difference between the AM and PM values increased significantly in the menstrual phase compared to the other 4 phases (P<0.01). A negative correlation between fluid retention and agility was observed.
conclusionIn female students fluid retention during the menstrual phase could be a factor that influences athletic agility.
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