Abstract
Arterial stiffness increases with ageing and hypertension. Regular physical activity has been recommended as an important management component of hypertension. The purpose of this study was to examine the acute impact of maximal dynamic exercise and the effect of 20 weeks of aerobic exercise on arterial stiffness of the carotid and brachial arteries in older hypertensives. Nine previously sedentary and treated older hypertensives (2 men and 7 women, age 68.2 ± 5.4 yrs) performed maximal treadmill exercise to volitional fatigue while arterial stiffness indices (arterial distensibility and β stiffness index) were measured prior to, immediately (about 10 min) following, and 24 h following maximal exercise. These measurements were repeated following 20 weeks of moderate intensity aerobic exercise training. Maximal exercise had no impact on arterial stiffness indices immediately and 24 h following exercise intervention. Following 20 weeks of training, arterial stiffness indices remained unchanged at rest and following maximal exercise. These data show that, in older hypertensives, 1) acute maximal dynamic exercise had no impact on arterial stiffness of the carotid and brachial arteries, and 2) 20 weeks of moderate intensity aerobic exercise training failed to modify arterial stiffness.
Highlights
Hypertension is one of the leading risk factors for mortality in developed countries
This study examined how 20 weeks of moderate intensity aerobic exercise training would influence on arterial stiffness indices at rest and following the acute maximal exercise
Subjects exercised for an average of 4.3 ± 1.2 d/wk, 44.2 ± 13.6 min/d, and at 91.1 ± 6.1% of target heart rate (HR)
Summary
Hypertension is one of the leading risk factors for mortality in developed countries. Despite the development of effective antihypertensive medications, pharmacological treatment for hypertension has been unable to make substantial impact on control rates [1] Lifestyle modification, such as regular physical activity, has been performed to reduce cardiovascular disease risk burden and is recommended as initial management for hypertension [2]. Regular physical activity, such as aerobic exercise, has been shown to be associated with reduced arterial stiffness, a possible mechanism of initiation and/or progression of hypertension [3], of central arteries in cross-sectional [4,5,6] and intervention studies [5]. In contrast to favorable effect of aerobic exercise training on arterial stiffness in middle-aged and older healthy adults [5], arterial stiffness of central and peripheral
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