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Conference Agenda

Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).

Daily Overview

Session

GR1_1_4: Pitch oral & HEPA promotion in Healthcare settings Working Group Meeting
Location: Glass room 1
Session Chair: Wolfgang Geidl
Session Chair: Suzanne Mc Donough

Presentation 3

4:46pm - 4:49pm

Determinants of macro- and microvascular function in physically active young adults: the role of blood pressure, sex, and aerobic capacity

Simon Iskra¹, Gašper Turnšek¹, Armin Paravlić^1,2,3

1: Faculty of sport, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia; 2: Science and Research Centre, Koper, Institute for Kinesiology Research, Koper, Slovenia; 3: Faculty of Sport Studies, Incubator of Kinanthropology Research, Masaryk University, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic

The aim of this study was to assess the influence of blood pressure, sex, and aerobic capacity on central and peripheral vascular function in healthy, active individuals.

Methods: Fifty apparently healthy, physically active participants aged 18-30 years were included in the study. Aerobic capacity was measured using a cardiopulmonary exercise test, blood pressure (BP) indices were measured using an oscillometric method. Central and peripheral arterial stiffness was measured using carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) and brachial-radial PWV (brPWV). Microvascular reactivity (reoxyslope) was measured using near-infrared spectroscopy during a 5-minute vascular occlusion test. Participants were stratified based on blood pressure categories for one-way analysis of variance. A multivariable linear regression was used to assess the effect of participant characteristics on vascular function.

Results: Significant differences in cfPWV were observed between participants with optimal BP compared to those with high-normal BP, while no differences were observed in brPWV or reoxyslope. Linear regression analysis revealed a significant independent effect of systolic BP on cfPWV (R²_adj = 0.35, p < 0.001), sex and systolic BP on brPWV (R²_adj = 0.14, p = 0.03) and a significant effect of sex on reoxyslope (R²_adj = 0.16, p = 0.043).

Conclusions: In healthy adults, elevated blood pressure is associated with increased central and peripheral arterial stiffness, despite sufficient physical activity level. Females seem to exhibit higher microvascular reactivity and lower peripheral arterial stiffness, indicating differential mechanisms underlying the regulation of peripheral and central vascular function. Aerobic capacity doesn’t seem to influence any of the vascular function measures.