Pain genotypes: Predisposition of athletes to hyperalgesia in sleep restriction contexts

Sleep restriction is genetically influenced, disrupting neurophysiological mechanisms that regulate chronobiology. This dysfunction impairs metabolic and sensorimotor functions, altering nociception and increasing the risk of inflammation and musculoskeletal injuries in athletes. Consequently, certain genetic polymorphisms stand out as biomarkers of this profile and the consequent reduction in athletic performance. This review seeks to correlate evidence on the variants associated with sleep modulation with alterations in athletic performance and to understand their physiological contributions. A search of studies in Portuguese and English indexed in SciELO and PubMed/MEDLINE (2013-2025) was conducted using the descriptors “sleep”, “pain”, “genetic polymorphisms”, and “sport”. Twenty articles were selected, including reviews, clinical studies, and meta-analyses. The Val66Met (BDNF) polymorphism is linked to increased chronic pain, sleep disorders, and fatigue; Y362H (DEC2) promotes reduced restorative sleep and greater resistance to its deprivation; and PER3 (VNTR) is associated with worse cognitive performance, executive function, and sustained attention. This reveals a complex interaction among neurophysiological, genetic, and environmental factors crucial to athletic health. Specifically, sleep deprivation dysregulates pain modulation, exacerbating inflammatory responses and injury risk. The connection between sleep, pain, and athletic performance is multifactorial. Future research could yield more effective, personalized strategies for injury prevention and performance optimization.