The Inverse Relationship between Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Intima-Media Thickness with Prehypertensive Middle-Aged Women

• Published in: The Tohoku Journal of Experimental Medicine Vol. 243; no. 4; pp. 283 - 288
• Main Authors: Kim, Dokyung, Park, Wonhah
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan Tohoku University Medical Press 01.12.2017
• Subjects: Atherosclerosis - physiopathology; Cardiorespiratory Fitness; carotid atherosclerosis; Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; exercise testing; Female; Humans; Hypertension - physiopathology; Logistic Models; Middle Aged; Odds Ratio; prehypertension; women’s health; carotid atherosclerosis; exercise testing; cardiorespiratory fitness; women’s health; prehypertension
• ISSN: 0040-8727; 1349-3329
• DOI: 10.1620/tjem.243.283

Individuals with prehypertension have a greater risk of developing hypertension and cardiovascular disease than those with normal blood pressure. Good cardiorespiratory fitness has been associated with a reduced risk for cardiovascular diseases, but whether it is related to slower progression of early atherosclerosis is unclear. We evaluated 442 women, aged 40-60 years, with resting systolic blood pressure 120-139 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure 80-89 mmHg, defined as prehypertension in cross-sectional study. Blood glucose, blood lipids and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) were measured at rest. Cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2peak) was measured by respiratory gas exchange during a treadmill exercise test. Participants were divided into three cardiorespiratory fitness levels: low, moderate, and high. The prevalence of subclinical carotid atherosclerosis was defined as a mean carotid intima-media thickness greater than the 75th percentile. After adjustment for various confounders, a high cardiorespiratory fitness level was associated with significantly lower SBP, DBP and CIMT compared with low and moderate fitness (p < 0.05). After adjustment for established risk factors, high and moderate fitness were each associated with significantly lower odds ratios for carotid atherosclerosis 0.74 (95% CI 0.45-0.92) and 0.70 (95% CI 0.46-0.95), respectively, compared with low fitness. Our results indicate that good cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with a slower progression of early atherosclerosis in middle-aged women. These findings are important, because they emphasize that middle-aged women can be evaluated for cardiorespiratory fitness to estimate their future risk for atherosclerotic vascular diseases.