AUTHOR=Deiseroth Arne , Streese Lukas , Köchli Sabrina , Wüst Romy Sandra , Infanger Denis , Schmidt-Trucksäss Arno , Hanssen Henner 

TITLE=Exercise and Arterial Stiffness in the Elderly: A Combined Cross-Sectional and Randomized Controlled Trial (EXAMIN AGE)

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Physiology

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/articles/10.3389/fphys.2019.01119

DOI=10.3389/fphys.2019.01119

ISSN=1664-042X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction:</title><p>Arterial stiffness (AST) is a main determinant of cardiovascular (CV) mortality. Long-term physical activity (PA) is considered to decrease age-related progression of AST but effects of short-term exercise interventions on AST remain unclear.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods:</title><p>In a combined cross-sectional and interventional study approach, we investigated the effects of long-term PA and short-term high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on AST in an older population. 147 older individuals (mean age 59 ± 7 years) were assigned to three groups according to their PA and CV risk profile and compared: healthy active (HA, <italic>n</italic> = 35), healthy sedentary (HS, <italic>n</italic> = 33) and sedentary at risk (SR, <italic>n</italic> = 79). In addition, SR were randomized to either 12 weeks of HIIT or standard recommendations. Pulse wave velocity (PWV) was measured by applanation tonometry. Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) was performed by symptom-limited spiroergometry to determine maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max).</p></sec><sec><title>Results:</title><p>Higher CRF was associated with lower PWV (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001) and VO2max explained 18% of PWV variance. PWV was higher in SR (8.2 ± 1.4 m/s) compared to HS (7.5 ± 1.6 m/s) and HA (7.0 ± 1.1 m/s; <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). 12 weeks of HIIT did not change PWV in SR. HIIT-induced reduction in systolic BP was associated with a reduction in PWV (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05).</p></sec><sec><title>Discussion:</title><p>SR show higher PWV compared to HS and long-term PA is associated with lower PWV. Reduction of AST following short-term HIIT seems to depend on a concomitant decrease in blood pressure. Our study puts into perspective the effects of long- and short-term exercise on arterial wall integrity as treatment options for CV prevention in an older population.</p></sec><sec><title>Clinical Trial Registration:</title><p><ext-link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="https://clinicaltrials.gov" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">ClinicalTrials.gov</ext-link>: NCT02796976 (<ext-link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02796976" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02796976</ext-link>).</p></sec>