Systolic Blood Pressure Response to Exercise in Endurance Athletes in Relation to Oxygen Uptake, Work Rate and Normative Values

Anna Carlén, Gustaf Eklund, August Andersson, Carl Johan Carlhäll, Magnus Ekström, Kristofer Hedman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Work rate has a direct impact on the systolic blood pressure (SBP) during aerobic exercise, which may be challenging in the evaluation of the SBP response in athletes reaching high work rates. We aimed to investigate the exercise SBP response in endurance athletes in relation to oxygen uptake (VO2), work rate and to recent reference equations for exercise SBP in the general population. Endurance athletes with a left-ventricular end-diastolic diameter above the reference one performed a maximal bicycle cardiopulmonary exercise test. The increase in SBP during exercise was divided by the increase in VO2 (SBP/VO2 slope) and in Watts, respectively (SBP/W slope). The maximum SBP (SBPmax) and the SBP/W slope were compared to the predicted values. In total, 27 athletes (59% men) were included; mean age, 40 ± 10 years; mean VO2max, 50 ± 5 mL/kg/min. The mean SBP/VO2 slope was 29.8 ± 10.2 mm Hg/L/min, and the mean SBP/W slope was 0.27 ± 0.08 mm Hg/W. Compared to the predicted normative values, athletes had, on average, a 12.2 ± 17.6 mm Hg higher SBPmax and a 0.12 ± 0.08 mm Hg/W less steep SBP/W slope (p < 0.01 and p < 0.001, respectively). In conclusion, the higher SBPmax values and the less steep SBP/W slope highlight the importance of considering work rate when interpreting the SBP response in endurance athletes and suggest a need for specific normative values in athletes to help clinicians distinguish physiologically high maximal blood pressure from a pathological blood pressure response.

Original languageEnglish
Article number227
JournalJournal of cardiovascular development and disease
Volume9
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022

Subject classification (UKÄ)

  • Sport and Fitness Sciences

Free keywords

  • blood pressure
  • endurance athletes
  • exercise
  • oxygen uptake
  • SBP/VO slope
  • SBP/W slope
  • work rate

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Systolic Blood Pressure Response to Exercise in Endurance Athletes in Relation to Oxygen Uptake, Work Rate and Normative Values'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this