[Arterial compliance during exertion in hypertensive and normal subjects of the same age]

In order to improve the reproducibility of arterial compliance measurements, normally taken at rest, we performed these measurements during exercise under stable conditions. Our aim was to determine, in both normotensive and hypertensive subjects, those parameters which condition changes in arterial compliance during exercise, and in particular age, systolic/diastolic arterial pressures and heart rate. The study involved 59 normotensive and 31 hypertensive subjects. Compliance was evaluated by measuring pulse wave velocity in the upper limbs at three levels of exercise: 50, 75 and 100 watts. Pulse wave velocity measured in different age-groups gradually increased at each exercise level, but age made no significant difference in values. Only one correlation appeared at recovery, with a significant (p less than 0.05) difference between normotensive and hypertensive subjects. As regards arterial pressures, there was only one correlation with diastolic pressure reflecting an increase in mural tension during exercise. A correlation with heart rate appeared during exercise, probably due to the vasomotor effect of a higher adrenergic tone. The diversity of vascular repercussions and haemodynamic regulation modes during exercise accounts for the variability of arterial compliance measurements taken during exercise, irrespective of age and blood pressure level. However, these measurements remain of interest for their reproducibility and their correlation with the adrenergic tone. This may be useful for the choice of an antihypertensive therapy.