Systemic Oxy-Inflammatory, Hormonal, and Mood Responses to a Ski Mountaineering Competition: Preliminary Evidence from Military Athletes

Abstract

The study investigated the systemic responses concerning oxy-inflammation, hormones, and mood after a ski mountaineering competition. Nine experienced military ski mountaineers (age, 32.37 ± 8.90 years; body mass, 59.37 ± 9.58 kg; BMI, 19.85 ± 1.53 kg/m−2) were non-invasively assessed using saliva and urine samples collected at baseline (T0) and immediately after competition (T1). Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), total antioxidant capacity, lipid peroxidation (8-isoPGF2α), systemic inflammatory responses (IL-6; TNF-α; sICAM), neurobiological markers of stress and mood regulation (cortisol and serotonin), and indicators of metabolic and immune activation (creatinine, neopterin, and uric acid) were obtained. In addition, psychometric, physical, and subjective rating scales were administered. At T1, significant increases in oxy-inflammatory biomarkers were recorded (ROS: +137%; 8-iso: +121%; IL-6: +175%; TNF-α: +45%); stress hormones (cortisol: +241%; serotonin: +141%), associated with changes in urinary creatinine (+60%) and an increase in immune activation (neopterin: +94%). An exploratory analysis suggested a potential quadratic association between race completion time and post-race ROS production rate (R2 = 0.552), warranting further investigation in larger cohorts. At T1, Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores increased by 98% for tiredness, 112% for fatigue, 36% for happiness, and 320% for pain. In conclusion, ski mountaineering competitions place an extremely high physiological burden on athletes, eliciting complex oxidative, inflammatory, metabolic, hormonal, and psychophysiological responses that may reflect the interactions among exercise intensity, cumulative hypoxic exposure, and redox adaptive mechanisms.