[Changes in the autonomic control of the cardiovascular system in human aging. meta-analysis.]

It is known that with the aging, the adaptive capabilities of his body decrease. This is due to both changes in autonomic regulation and morphological remodeling of the cardiovascular system. To assess age-related changes in the autonomic nervous and cardiovascular systems, a meta-analysis was carried out, which examined changes in the aging of hemodynamic parameters [blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR)], heart rate variability (HRV), catecholamine concentrations, electrical activity of muscle sympathetic nerves (MSHA) , as well as the magnitude of the BR. The results of 32 works from the PubMed database were analyzed, in which healthy people of different age groups (27±5 and 64±5 years) were compared by the studied indicators. As a result of a meta-analysis, it was found that in older people compared with young people, the BP is higher, HR remains unchanged, but HRV and BR significantly decrease, the sympathetic-vagal balance shifts toward an increase in sympathetic effects on heart function, MSNA and plasma noradrenaline level increase. In the elderly people a loosening in autonomic control with an increase in sympathetic nervous activity causes an increase in the baseline of BP and its increase in conditions of stress. These changes are the cause of a decrease in the adaptive abilities of the old person and a substrate for the development of cardiovascular pathologies.