Effect of the aerobic physical activity on systemic blood pressure and endothelial function in patients submitted to cardiac transplantation

• Grant number: 07/05639-9
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: January 01, 2008
• End date: June 30, 2010
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Effort
• Principal Investigator: Guilherme Veiga Guimarães
• Grantee: Guilherme Veiga Guimarães
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

After cardiac transplantation (TX) the systemic hypertension develops in 67% of the patients in one year after TX. Multiple factors are involved as the cause of the increase in blood pressure, among them the immunosuppressive therapy and cardiac denervation. The arterial hypertension can increase the incidence of cerebral vascular accident, coronary disease, congestive heart failure, peripheral arterial disease and kidney deficiency, beyond a bigger rate of mortality by cardiovascular disease and general mortality. We hypothesized that exercise training program contributes to the attenuation of arterial hypertension after cardiac transplantation. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of aerobic continuous exercise on the arterial stiffness, blood pressure, endothelial function and quality of life, in cardiac transplantation. METHODOLOGY: 50 patients of both sex with age between 20 and 70 years, will be study. They will be divided in: Group I (n=40) training, Group II (n=10) control. All subjects will be assessment by cardiopulmonary test, twenty-four hour arterial blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), pulse wave velocity (PWV), endothelial function, and index of quality of life before and after training. The group I will be included in the physical training program for three months. The ABPM will be applied just after the first session of exercise training. Then, both of them will be evaluated again at the end of the study. (AU)