Research & Technical Articles Enzymes for Athletic Injuries < continued from previous page However, this has not been the case in Europe, where the conditions under which the medical community operates are considerably different. In European countries, particularly Germany, the use of enzymes as anti-inflammatory agents is very prevalent, especially in applications involving sports injuries. Scientific investigation of the use of enzymes as aids to recovery from sports injuries has been very active as well. Bruise Healing For example, Dr. M. W. Kleine and his co-workers at the Sports Medicine Investigation Center in Grunwald, Germany conducted a study of the effectiveness of proteolytic enzymes on 100 athletes. In this study, two cubic centimeters of blood were removed from the anticubital vein of each subject and injected under the skin of the inside of the right forearm to artificially produce a hematoma. Half of the subjects then took anti-inflammatory enzymes and half took a placebo, each three times daily. The results were measured in terms of amount of pain, pain caused by pressure, and rapidity of disappearance of the hematoma. The findings were convincing. The success rate was evaluated as "good" by 76% of the enzyme-treated subjects, and by only 14% of those treated with a placebo. In other words, the enzyme-treated subjects felt less pain, less pain on pressure, the pain caused by pressure disappeared sooner, and the visible hematoma disappeared much sooner. Injury Prevention In another double blind study involving preventive treatment, 20 karate fighters were divided into groups of ten each, with one group receiving enzymes and the other a placebo. After each subject had engaged in competition during which they received bruises, each was examined daily to determine the healing rate of the bruises. The results were impressive. The athletes treated proplylactically with enzymes suffered hematomas which disappeared within seven days, while the athletes who received no enzymes required 16 days for the same results. > Enzymes for Athletic Injuries continued Home | Product Line | Endorsements | FAQs | Research | Order Products VITAL PRODUX™ 44 Mine Rd. Suite 2, PMB 209 Stafford, Virginia  22554  USA 540-286-2400 – FAX: 540-752-4765 E-mail: info@VitalProdux.com Copyright © 1996-2003, VTI, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Text, graphics, and HTML code are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without explicit permission. Vital Produx™ is a trademark of VTI, Inc. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.