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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Int J Sports Med 2024; 45(07): 519-525
DOI: 10.1055/a-2270-3127
Clinical Sciences

Exercise-induced Hypertension and Carotid Intima-media Thickness in Male Marathon Runners

Eun Sun Yoon
1   Sports for All, Korea National Open University, Jongno-gu, Korea (the Republic of)
,
Young-Joo Kim
2   Department of Exercise Rehabilitation & Welfare, Sungshin Women's University, Seongbuk-gu, Korea (the Republic of)
› Author Affiliations Funding Information The Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the National Research Foundation of Korea — NRF- 2021S1A5A2A03069917.
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Abstract

This study aimed to identify the relationship between exercise-induced hypertension and carotid artery intima-media thickness in long-distance runners. Sixty healthy male runners aged 40 to 60 years were assigned to the following three groups based on resting blood pressure and maximal systolic blood pressure during a maximal exercise test: normal blood pressure response, exercise-induced hypertension, and complex hypertension. An exaggerated systolic blood pressure response was defined as a maximal systolic blood pressure+≥+210 mmHg during the maximal exercise test, while carotid intima-media thickness was measured using B-mode ultrasonography. The carotid intima-media thickness mean values were the highest in the complex hypertension group (0.72±0.11 mm), followed by exercise-induced hypertension (0.62±0.12 mm) and normal blood pressure groups (0.55±0.13 mm), with a significant difference between the groups (p+<+0.002). In linear regression analysis, the mean intima-media thickness was independently associated with age (p=0.015) and maximal systolic blood pressure (p=0.046) but not with resting systolic blood pressure. These results suggest that exercise-induced hypertension is associated with carotid intima-media thickness, a surrogate marker of cardiovascular disease, in long-distance runners. Therefore, evaluating the blood pressure response during exercise is important for the early detection of potential cardiovascular disease risks in long-distance runners.

Keywords

marathon - exercise-induced hypertension - carotid intima-media thickness


Publication History

Received: 05 July 2023

Accepted: 01 February 2024

Accepted Manuscript online:
16 February 2024

Article published online:
28 March 2024

© 2024. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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