MEDICAL AREA   

Medicina dello Sport 2020 June;73(2):254-9

DOI: 10.23736/S0025-7826.20.03617-0

Copyright © 2020 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English, Italian

Exercise induced cardiovascular response in athletes versus healthy sedentary individuals

Ali ALDUJELI ¹ ✉, Kasparas BRIEDIS ², Montazar ALDUJEILI ³, Vytenis SEMASKA ¹, Rima BRAUKYLIENE ¹, Gediminas JARUSEVICIUS ¹, Ramunas UNIKAS ¹

¹ Department of Cardiology, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania; ² Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, UK; ³ Medical Academy, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy

BACKGROUND: Physical activity causes a dramatic elevation in blood pressure and heart rate of individuals, usually these changes are proportional. The aim of this study was to assess the dynamic variation occurring in blood pressure and heart rate in athletes versus healthy sedentary individuals for a given amount of exercise.
METHODS: A total of 180 Lithuanian males aged between 21-25 years volunteered to participate in the study. Male athletes (N.=90) were included in the study based on the criteria of at least 2 years of regular aerobic training and they were compared with untrained healthy sedentary individuals (N.=90). Exercise performance test was Harvard step test. The individual who is taking the test steps up and down on a platform in a cycle of two seconds. The platform is at a height of about 50 cm. The rate of 30 steps per minute must be sustained for five minutes or until exhaustion. Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS 20.0 software. The value of P<0.05 was considered as statistically significant.
RESULTS: The mean systolic blood pressure in untrained healthy sedentary individuals before exercise was statistically insignificant compared to athletes at rest (122.55±3.05 vs. 125.75±3.20, P>0.05), Similarly diastolic blood pressure at rest (80.05±3.27 vs. 82.69±1.70, P>0.1), Whereas heart rate at rest (77.75±2.46 vs. 61.5±3.1, P<0.01). Systolic blood pressure in untrained healthy sedentary individuals compared to athletes after 5 minutes of Harvard step test (150.05±5,3 vs. 156.81±5.24, P<0.001), similarly diastolic blood pressure (83.5±2.97 vs. 85.0 ±1.60, P>0.1), whereas heart rate (133.8±3.01 vs. 113.0±1.10, P<0.01).
CONCLUSIONS: Athletes have lower resting heart rates. Moreover, Athletes cardiovascular response to exercise was an increase in the systolic blood pressure with proportionately lower heart rates when compared to healthy sedentary individuals.

KEY WORDS: Heart rate; Blood pressure; Athletes; Sedentary behavior