Physical activity is associated with lower arterial stiffness in older adults: results of the SAPALDIA 3 Cohort Study

Abstract

Associations of physical activity (PA) intensity with arterial stiffness in older adults at the population level are insufficiently studied. We examined cross-sectional associations of self-reported PA intensities with arterial stiffness in elderly Caucasians of the Swiss Cohort Study on Air Pollution and Lung and Heart Diseases in Adults. Mixed central and peripheral arterial stiffness was measured oscillometrically by the cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV). The self-reported International Physical Activity Questionnaire long version was administered to classify each subject's PA level. We used univariable and multivariable mixed linear and logistic regression models for analyses in 1908 persons aged 50 years and older. After adjustment for several confounders moderate, vigorous and total PA were inversely associated with CAVI (p = 0.02-0.03). BaPWV showed negative and marginally significant associations with vigorous and moderate PA (each p = 0.06), but not with total PA (p = 0.28). Increased arterial stiffness (CAVI 9, upper tertile) was inversely and significantly associated with vigorous PA [odds ratio (OR) 0.65, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.48-0.88], and marginally significantly with total PA (OR 0.76, 95 % CI 0.57-1.02) and moderate PA (OR 0.75, 95 % CI 0.56-1.01). The odds ratio for baPWV 14.4 was 0.67 (95 % CI 0.48-0.93) across the vigorous PA levels, and was non-significant across the total (OR 0.91, 95 % CI 0.66-1.23) and moderate PA levels (OR 0.94, 95 % CI 0.69-1.28). In this general Caucasian population of older adults higher levels especially of vigorous PA were associated with lower arterial stiffness. These data support the importance of PA for improving cardiovascular health in elderly people.

Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Long‐Term Changes in Aortic Stiffness: The Whitehall II Study

“…Cross-sectional studies have shown inverse associations between physical activity and various measures of arterial stiffness among younger 17,[30][31][32] and older adults. [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] Considering lower exercise levels could in principle be the consequence of, rather than the risk factor for, greater aortic stiffness, interpretation of the findings of cross-sectional studies are ambiguous. Our longitudinal finding of slower PWV progression in the group that increased their physical activity over time is a novel and important mechanistic pointer.…”

“…5,6 Clinically, this pathology translates to functional limitation, 7 excess cardiovascular events, and premature mortality. 8 Arterial stiffness has been shown to be associated with low levels of physical activity [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] and sedentary behavior. 14,[17][18][19] However, previous studies are cross-sectional, include only 1 assessment of arterial stiffness, or are small, short-duration trials.…”

Association between arterial stiffness and peripheral artery disease as measured by radial artery tonometry

“…Measures of arterial stiffness have been shown to improve with reduction of traditional risk factors, increased physical activity, smoking cessation, and weight loss. 9, 40 Anti-hypertensives have been shown to reduce PWV, 41 anti-inflammatory agents reduce PWV and AIX, 33 and revascularization leads to a modest reduction in AIX. 42 …”

Blood Pressure and All‐Cause Mortality by Level of Cognitive Function in the Elderly: Results From a Population‐Based Study in Rural Greece

“…In particular, older age, female sex, lack of physical activity, depression, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension are all factors that are associated with arterial stiffness in the elderly. [51][52][53][54] Therefore, the observed susceptibility of cognitively impaired patients might be attributed to the higher prevalence of arterial stiffness. This is further supported by the fact that among BP parameters, only higher PP values were observed in cognitively impaired patients.…”