Hypertension trends over the decades: examining post-exercise blood pressure dynamics in age-stratified groups.
M Spahiu, A Sabatini, M El ShahawyAbstract
Background
Elevated supine blood pressure (BP) despite normal seated BP is with increased interest in recent studies.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to assess whether increasing age is associated with greater BP rise post mild exercise between subjects with normal seated and supine BP versus those with normal seated and elevated supine BP.
Methods
A total of 2320 asymptomatic subjects were screened for cardiovascular risk utilizing the Early Cardiovascular Disease Risk Scoring System (ECVDRS), also called Rasmussen Risk Score which has been previously reported. In summary, the ECVDRS incorporates 7 vascular tests and 3 cardiac tests, including BP rise (<3 0mmHg) post mild exercise. These 2320 subjects were analyzed with both seated and supine BP measurements. The BP measurements were classified into the latest standard American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines. These subjects were further separated into 1223 who were not on any medications. The 1223 subjects were grouped into BP measurements with normal seated and supine compared to normal seated and abnormal supine BP. The 1223 subjects were grouped by age, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79 years, in Groups A, B and C Respectively.
Results
See Tables.
Conclusions
In normotensive seated and supine subjects, BP-rise post mild exercise becomes more pronounced with each increasing decade. BP-rise post mild exercise increases progressively with advanced age in subjects with normotensive seated and elevated supine BP. Elevated supine BP leads to more elevated BP-rise post exercise compared to normal supine BP. Elevated supine BP is associated with increased structural and functional abnormalities. According to our data, most subjects with normal seated and elevated supine BP correlated with increased structural and functional abnormalities. Time to change the guidelines.20260228-ESC2026-Abstract2-Table-Smaller