A 30-minute walk at moderate intensity temporarily reduced blood pressure in women with rheumatoid arthritis, not only at rest but also under stress. This was the conclusion drawn from a study involving physical and cognitive tests.
According to Peçanha, the findings can apply to other autoimmune inflammatory diseases, such as lupus, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory myopia, and juvenile lupus.
The 24-hour monitoring test showed that exercise lowered systolic pressure by 5 mmHg on average. "This amount of reduction is significant, correlating with a 14% lower risk of death from stroke, a 9% lower risk of death from coronary arterial disease, and a 7% lower risk of all-cause death for people with hypertension," he explained.
"The temporary effect of just one aerobic exercise session is very important since acute reductions in blood pressure on several consecutive days are expected to accumulate and lead to a sustained reduction over time."
The reduction was observed even after the stress tests. "The Stroop test is widely used in studies that analyze the cardiovascular response to mental stress, for example. In rheumatoid arthritis patients, it typically raises systolic pressure [to 16 mmHg] and diastolic pressure [to 12 mmHg] on average. In our study, however, systolic pressure fell by 6 mmHg after exercise," he said, adding that this reduction was not observed when they performed the test after a resting period (control).
In the Cold Pressor (pain tolerance) test, systolic and diastolic pressure are expected to rise to 18 mmHg and 11 mmHg respectively on average, while heart rate typically rises by 1 bpm. In the study, systolic pressure rose even more sharply (to 25 mmHg) in six patients.
On the day of the 30-minute walk, systolic pressure fell by 1 mmHg on average. On the day when they remained at rest, it rose by 4 mmHg.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...