Acute Blood Pressure Effects in Older Adults with Hypertension After Different Modalities of Exercise: An Experimental Study.

This study investigated the acute blood pressure (BP) effects of different exercise modalities in older adults with hypertension. Sixty volunteers were randomly assigned (n = 15/group) into different exercise protocols: resistance, bike, water-based exercise (WE), and a control session-all for ∼45 min. Clinic BP measurements were taken before, immediately after, and 15 and 30 min after protocols. The data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance; generalized estimating equations, following Bonferroni post hoc (p < .05). Immediately after exercise, the systolic BP (SBP) increased in all exercise protocols (resistance exercise = Δ10.3, bike exercise = Δ5.8, WE = Δ9.5 mmHg; p < .001), while the diastolic BP was not altered. Afterward, the SBP reached the value observed before exercise. In Minute 30, only WE presented a significant reduction for SBP (WE = Δ-4.6 mmHg; p < .05). This study has important clinical implications in hemodynamic safety for acute BP increases immediately after exercises, as well as, in the SBP, reduction benefits for older adults with hypertension.

Postexercise Hypotension After Aquatic Exercise in Older Women With Hypertension: A Randomized Crossover Clinical Trial.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension can be prevented and modified with lifestyle interventions that include regular exercise. Aquatic exercise is widely recommended for older adults for a variety of health benefits, but few studies have assessed the immediate ambulatory blood pressure (BP) response to aquatic exercise, a response termed postexercise hypotension (PEH). Thus, we assessed PEH after a session of aquatic exercise in physically active, older women with hypertension. METHODS: Twenty-four women 70.0 ± 3.9 years with a resting systolic (SBP)/diastolic (DBP) BP of 124.0/72.3 mm Hg and body mass index of 29.8 ± 4.1 kg/m2 were randomly assigned to participate in a 45-minute session of moderate intensity, water-based exercise (WATER) and a 45-minute land control session (CONTROL). All experimental sessions started at 9 am sharply with 7 days between them. Subjects left the experiments wearing an ambulatory BP monitor for the next 21 hours. RESULTS: SBP was lower by 5.1 ± 1.0 mm Hg after WATER than CONTROL over 21 hours (P < 0.001), over awake hours by 5.7 ± 1.1 mm Hg (P < 0.001), and sleep hours by 4.5 ± 0.4 mm Hg (P = 0.004). DBP was lower following WATER compared to CONTROL: 1.2 ± 0.3 mm Hg over 21 hours (P = 0.043); 0.9 ± 0.6 mm Hg over awake hours (P = 0.101); and 1.4 ± 0.9 mm Hg over sleep hours (P = 0.039). CONCLUSIONS: Aquatic exercise elicited PEH (~5 mm Hg) over 21 hours, BP reductions that are comparable in magnitude to land aerobic exercise. The immediate antihypertensive benefits of acute aquatic exercise should continue to be explored in future studies.

Subacute blood pressure response in elderly hypertensive women after a water exercise session : a controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: There are few studies relating the practice of water exercises and blood pressure responses. AIM: The objective of this study was to evaluate the subacute blood pressure behaviour in elderly hypertensive women after a water exercise session. METHODS: This was a controlled clinical trial, carried out with 16 hypertensive elderly women with the following characteristics (mean ± SD): age 66 ± 2.94 years, body weight 68.43 ± 12.08 kg, height 158 ± 5.34 cm and body mass index 27.32 ± 4.30 kg/m(2). The study occurred on 2 days, 48 hours apart, with an experimental protocol and a control protocol. The experimental protocol underwent a moderately intense and predominantly aerobic 40-minute session with water exercises for the upper and lower limbs. The control protocol did not enter the pool and did not exercise, but all other procedures were similar to those of the experimental protocol. The blood pressure measurements were performed at times before and every 10 minutes for 30 minutes after the protocols. Student's t-test was used to determine if the averages of the two samples were significantly different. RESULTS: Blood pressure increased significantly but not greatly after the water exercise session, but this did not happen with the control protocol. Systolic blood pressure in the experimental protocol decreased significantly only 30 minutes after the exercise session, which did not occur in the control protocol. Diastolic blood pressure, on the other hand, decreased significantly at minutes 10, 20 and 30. This also did not occur with the control protocol, but an intergroup analysis showed that diastolic blood pressure was similar for the two protocols. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study show that a prescription of water exercises can be carried out in relative safety with this group of patients, and that systolic blood pressure tended to decrease, as shown by the measurement at minute 30.