Impaired hemodynamic response to mental stress in subjects with prehypertension is improved after a single bout of maximal dynamic exercise

• Main Authors: Renata Frauches Medeiros, Bruno Moreira Silva, Fabricia Junqueira Neves, Natalia Galito Rocha, Allan Robson Kluser Sales, Antonio Claudio Nobrega
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Faculdade de Medicina / USP 2011-01-01
• Series: Clinics
• Subjects: Psychological stress; Blood pressure; Blood flow; Physical exercise; Hypertension
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1807-59322011000900003
• ISSN: 1807-5932; 1980-5322

INTRODUCTION: High blood pressure during mental stress in subjects with prehypertension is associated with blunted vasodilation in skeletal muscles, which might be improved by an acute bout of exercise. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the hemodynamic responses to mental stress before and after a bout of exercise in subjects with prehypertension. METHOD: Eighteen subjects with prehypertension and 16 with normotension underwent a mental stress test before and after a maximal cardiopulmonary exercise test on a treadmill. Blood pressure was measured by auscultation, and forearm blood flow was measured by venous occlusion plethysmography; from these measurements, the vascular conductance was calculated. RESULTS: Subjects with prehypertension had a higher mean blood pressure during mental stress (prehypertension 112±2 vs. normotension 101±3 mm Hg, p<0.05), and their vascular conductance did not increase (baseline 0.025±0.004 vs. mental stress 0.022±0.003 a.u., p.0.05). After the exercise bout, the mean blood pressure during mental stress was lower in subjects with prehypertension (before exercise 112±2 vs. after exercise 107±2 mm Hg, p<0.05), and vascular conductance increased (baseline 0.011±0.001 vs. mental stress 0.024±0.004 a.u., p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Subjects with prehypertension had elevated blood pressure and a blunted vasodilator response during mental stress, but their blood pressure was attenuated and their vasodilator response was normalized after a single bout of maximal dynamic exercise.