Changes in arterial blood pressure during exercise in trained young distance runners, untrained young men and untrained men of middle and elderly age

The response in arterial blood pressure to exercise may be a useful item to medically check physical training. Changes in arterial blood pressure were investigated in three groups: trained young distance runners, untrained young men and untrained men of middle and elder ages. 12 minute bicycle-ergometer riding was imposed increasing the work load stepwise until the heart rate reached 140 beats/min. The blood pressure was measured by Korotkov's method. Regarding the diastolic pressure during exercise, the value obtained by Korotkov's sound is said to be different from the value determined by direct method. However, the authors adopted Swan's fifth point (cessation of sound) as diastolic pressure, because it seems to be routine practice. The increment in systolic pressure due to exercise was higher in the middle aged and elderly than in the untrained young men, and that in the trained young distance runners was even higher than in the former. The tendency was unchanged even after correction was made by the decrease in exercise heart-rate due to aging. Accordingly, it can be said that increment in systolic pressure due to exercise would be augmented by aging on one side and also by improvement of capacity of endurance owing to training on the other side. The diastolic pressure in the middle and elderly aged showed a tendency of slight rise during exercise, while that in the young men declined markedly during exercise. The decline usually began earlier in the trained than in the untrained. As a result, the magnitude of the change in pulse pressure due to exercise was in the order of 'trained>untrained young men>middle aged and elderly, and the difference between each group was highly significant. The order as such was coincident with the presumed order of capability in circulatory function. The relation between heart rate and blood pressure, as far as the present data is concerned, was fairly linear in systolic, diastolic and pulse pressure. Based on the findings, it can be said that the changes in arterial blood pressure measured by Korotkov's sound during exercise, might be significant indices for judgment of capacity of respiro-ciculatory function, even though the values are somewhat different from those measured by direct method.