Effects Of Creatine Supplementation And Resistance Training On Muscle Strength In Older Females: Systematic Review/meta-analysis
Botero, Joao P. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: September 2022 - Volume 54 - Issue 9S - p 116-117
PURPOSE: The age-related decrease in muscle strength, particularly evident in older females, reduces functionality and overall quality of life. Accumulating research indicates that the combination of creatine supplementation and resistance training has the potential to improve measures of muscle strength in older females. The aim was to systematically review the literature and summarize the available scientific evidence on Cr + RT in older females, and to perform meta-analyses on muscle strength in older females.
METHODS: We reviewed randomized controlled trials (RCT’s) investigating the efficacy of Cr + RT on measures of upper- and lower-body strength in older females. A systematic literature search was performed in Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrane, Scopus, SportDiscus, CINAHL, Lilacs, Scielo, and Web of Science. The searches included combinations of the following MESH terms: “Aged”, “Resistance training”, “Creatine” and “Muscle strength”. No filters were applied, and we did not restrict the search by language or date of publication. This step was carried out by two authors independently.
RESULTS: Eight RCT’s were included in the analyses. Overall, Cr increased upper-body strength (p = 0.04) but had no effect on lower-body strength. Sub-analyses revealed that Cr increased lower-body strength (p = 0.03) in studies lasting > 24 weeks (Figure 1).
CONCLUSIONS: Older females supplementing with Cr experienced significant gains in upper-body and lower-body muscle strength when RT is at least 24 weeks in duration.