Cardiovascular function in the elderly during water immersion

In attempting to clarify the effects of aging on the regulatory functions of the cardiovascular system, we measured blood pressure, heart rate and stroke volume during thermoneutral head-out water immersion in seven healthy elderly and eight healthy young subjects. In the young subjects water immers...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inEnvironmental medicine : annual report of the Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Nagoya University Vol. 37; no. 1; p. 91
Main Authors Sugiyama, Y, Miwa, C, Xue, Y X, Iwase, S, Suzuki, H, Matsukawa, T, Watanabe, T, Kobayashi, F, Mano, T
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Japan 1993
Subjects
Adult
Aged
Aging - physiology
Baroreflex - physiology
Blood Pressure - physiology
Fluid Shifts - physiology
Heart Rate - physiology
Humans
Immersion - physiopathology
Male
Stroke Volume - physiology
Water
Weightlessness Simulation
Online AccessGet more information

Cover

More Information
Summary:In attempting to clarify the effects of aging on the regulatory functions of the cardiovascular system, we measured blood pressure, heart rate and stroke volume during thermoneutral head-out water immersion in seven healthy elderly and eight healthy young subjects. In the young subjects water immersion resulted in a marked increase in stroke volume, a deceleration of the heart rate and stable blood pressure values. In the elderly group the blood pressure increased significantly during shoulder-level water immersion. Compared to the young subjects, the elderly presented a less pronounced elevation of the stroke volume, and no change in the heart rate. These results indicate that the vasodepressive mechanisms regulated by baroreflexes diminish with aging, resulting in an elevation of blood pressure.
ISSN:0287-0517