Abstract
Clinical Scenario: Oral contraceptive pills are widely used among women to prevent pregnancies and help control symptoms associated with the menstrual cycle. Female athletes using these contraceptives may be susceptible to lower athletic performance because of the effects of the added hormones.
Clinician Question: In elite female athletes, how do oral hormonal contraceptives affect performance capacity?
Findings: A search was conducted on research regarding the relationship between oral contraceptives and female athletic performance, specifically affecting strength, power, endurance, and fatigue. Cabre et al.²⁷ studied fatigability, Dragutinovic et al.²⁸ looked at strength performance, neuromuscular fatigue, and perceived exertion, while Mathy et al.²⁹ looked at maximal and submaximal endurance parameters.
Bottom Line: Evidence shows that oral contraceptive pills do not affect female performance in any of the strength, power, endurance, and fatigue testing conducted. Future research should include range of motion and flexibility within the muscles during different hormonal phase cycles and studying performance during on/off seasons for sports.
Clinician Question: In elite female athletes, how do oral hormonal contraceptives affect performance capacity?
Findings: A search was conducted on research regarding the relationship between oral contraceptives and female athletic performance, specifically affecting strength, power, endurance, and fatigue. Cabre et al.²⁷ studied fatigability, Dragutinovic et al.²⁸ looked at strength performance, neuromuscular fatigue, and perceived exertion, while Mathy et al.²⁹ looked at maximal and submaximal endurance parameters.
Bottom Line: Evidence shows that oral contraceptive pills do not affect female performance in any of the strength, power, endurance, and fatigue testing conducted. Future research should include range of motion and flexibility within the muscles during different hormonal phase cycles and studying performance during on/off seasons for sports.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| State | Published - 14 Feb 2025 |
| Event | Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences Research Week 2025 - Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, United States Duration: 10 Feb 2025 → 14 Feb 2025 https://medicine.okstate.edu/research/research_days.html |
Conference
| Conference | Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences Research Week 2025 |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | United States |
| City | Tulsa |
| Period | 10/02/25 → 14/02/25 |
| Internet address |
Keywords
- blood lactate
- performance
- elite female athletes
- oral hormonal contraceptives