The effects of menstrual cycle phase on the incidence of plateau at and associated cardiorespiratory dynamics

Summary The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of menstrual cycle phase on maximal oxygen uptake ( ) and associated cardiodynamic responses. A total of 16 active females volunteered of which n = 10 formed the non‐oral contraceptive pill group (n‐ OCP ), displaying a regular menstrual cycle of 28·4 ± 2·2 days (age 20·6 ± 1·6 years, height 169·9 ± 6·4 cm, mass 68·7 ± 7·9 kg) and n = 6 formed the oral contraceptive pill group ( OCP ) (monophasic pill) (age 21·7 years ± 2·16, height 168·1 cm ± 6·8 cm, mass 61·6 ± 6·8 kg). Each completed four incremental exercise tests for determination of , cardiac output, stroke volume and heart rate. Each test was completed according to the phases of the menstrual cycle as determined through salivary analysis of 17‐β oestrodiol and progesterone. Non‐significant differences were observed for across phases and between groups ( P >0·05) with additional non‐significant differences for , HR max and SV max between groups. For ∆ during the final 60 s of the trial, significant differences were observed between OCP and n‐ OCP ( P <0·05) with OCP showing zero plateaus in three pseudo‐phases. Significant difference observed for a‐ vO 2dif n‐ OCP between premenstruation and menstruation at 30–100% ( P <0·05). Data suggest that the ‐plateau is effected by monophasic oral contraceptive pill, furthermore these data imply that test outcome is independent of menstrual cycle phase but caution should be applied when evaluating maximal oxygen uptake in females who are administered a monophasic oral contraceptive pill.