Moreover, Δ body mass and % Δ body mass were positively related to post-race plasma [Na+] in ultra-runners (R3).

Finishers with lower levels of plasma [Na+] had higher losses in body mass. A direct positive relationship between post-race plasma [Na+] and Δ body mass was reported by Hoffman et al. [11, 38], Lebus et al. [7] and by Reid et al. [66], in contrast to what has been observed for many other races. Hoffman et al. [11] provided click here in the latest study the other side of the inverted-U curve to support the depletional model of EAH. Sodium losses, impairment in mobilization of osmotically inactive sodium stores and/or inappropriate inactivation of osmotically active sodium are alternative explanations. The relative importance of each of these factors cannot be determined from the present study. Race pace and prevalence of EAH Despite other influences, a lower race pace could also increase the risk of EAH [39]. We hypothesized that the prevalence

of EAH would be higher in ultra-runners in a 24-hour race, since they compete at a slower pace compared to ultra-cyclists in a 24-hour selleck chemical race. The important finding was that two (4.9%) of all 41 cyclists and one (8.3%) of 12 runners in our study developed EAH which was consistent with our premises. It should be taken into account that race speed and the number of achieved kilometers (i.e. race performance) during Tolmetin a 24-hour race might depend on physical condition, motivation,

tactics or other factors [35, 36, 66]. The performance of the best athletes in a 24-hour MTB race was as fast at the end as at the beginning of a race, and the decrease or the increase in race speed has to do with tactics in the race, not overall pace [66]. It is difficult to compare race speed between cyclists and runners. However, the comparison of race performance of cases with EAH showed different results. In the 24-hour MTB races, EAH-A-R2 was a cyclist with a higher speed (18.4 km/h) and a better race performance (i.e. 9th place from 116 participants in solo category) in comparison with the other finishers in R2 (Table 2). EAH-B-R3 was even the best in absolute ranking (i.e. 1st place from 48 participants) with an average running speed of 9.2 km/h. Moreover, in R2 and R3, race performance was negatively Selleckchem PXD101 associated with post-race plasma [Na+]. Finishers with lower post-race [Na+] in R2 and R3 achieved more kilometers during the 24 hours. These findings supported our results, where two of three hyponatremic athletes in our study were among the top finishers in our races. Presumably, the specific character of 24-hour races might explain this contradictory finding. The better performance seen in the faster runners is influenced by numerous reasons, such as the motivation to achieve a higher number of kilometers or better race time [35, 36, 66].