Cardiovascular responses of peripheral artery disease patients during resistance exercise

BACKGROUND: Resistance training has been used for the treatment of patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD). However, cardiovascular responses during this type of exercise have not been fully elucidated in these patients. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the cardiovascular responses during resistance exercise and to verify whether there are any correlations between these responses and disease severity or blood pressure levels in patients with PAD. METHODS: Seventeen PAD patients performed one set of 10 repetitions of knee extension exercise with an intensity of 50% of one repetition maximum. The responses of systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and heart rate (HR) were continuously monitored using the finger photoplethysmography technique. The rate-pressure product (RPP) was obtained by multiplication of SBP and HR. RESULTS: During the resistance exercises there were significant increases in SBP (126 ± 14 vs. 184 ± 20 mmHg, p<0.001), DBP (68 ± 8 vs. 104 ± 14 mmHg, p<0.001), HR (76 ± 18 vs. 104 ± 30 bpm, p<0.001) and RPP (9523 ± 2115 vs. 19103 ± 6098 mmHg x bpm, p<0.001). A negative correlation was observed between relative change (Δ) in SBP and SBP at rest (r =-0.549, p=0.022). On the other hand, there was no relationship between Δ SBP and the ankle-brachial index (r=0.076, p=0.771). CONCLUSION: Increases in cardiovascular variables were observed during resistance exercise in PAD patients. The highest increases occurred in patients with lower SBP levels at resting.