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Updated: Jul 11, 2025
Assessment of Vascular Function in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease
Published on: June 16, 2014
Exercise for chronic kidney disease: effects on vascular and cardiopulmonary function
Danielle L Kirkman1, Domenico A Chavez1
1Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, United States.
Insights
Exercise can improve vascular and cardiopulmonary function in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). This lifestyle strategy is crucial for managing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in CKD patients.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Cardiology
- Exercise Physiology
Background:
- Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) exhibit high rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD).
- Vascular dysfunction and low cardiorespiratory fitness are key contributors to CVD in CKD.
- Current pharmacological treatments have limited success in reducing CVD prevalence in CKD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the effects of exercise on vascular and cardiopulmonary function in CKD patients.
- To highlight exercise as a therapeutic target for vascular dysfunction in CKD.
- To discuss future research directions for exercise interventions in CKD.
Main Methods:
- This is a narrative review.
- Literature search on exercise effects in CKD patients.
- Discussion of physiological mechanisms and clinical implications.
Main Results:
- Exercise positively impacts endothelial function and arterial stiffness in CKD.
- Physical activity improves cardiorespiratory fitness in individuals with CKD.
- Exercise offers a promising adjuvant strategy to pharmacological therapies for CVD risk reduction in CKD.
Conclusions:
- Exercise training is a vital lifestyle intervention for improving cardiovascular health in CKD.
- Targeting vascular dysfunction through exercise is a key strategy for managing CVD in CKD.
- Integrating exercise into routine clinical care is essential for CKD patients.
Abstract:
Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have an exacerbated prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Vascular dysfunction, characterized by impaired endothelial function and arterial stiffness, and markedly low cardiorespiratory fitness levels are hallmark manifestations of the disease that contribute to the CVD burden. Despite advancements in blood pressure and lipid lowering pharmacological therapies, CVD remains markedly prevalent across the spectrum of CKD. This highlights a stagnation in effective clinical strategies to improve cardiovascular health and reinforces the critical need for adjuvant lifestyle strategies such as physical activity and exercise training to be incorporated into routine clinical care. This narrative review provides an overview of the known effects of exercise on vascular and cardiopulmonary function across the spectrum of CKD. The physiological mechanisms of vascular dysfunction that serve as exercise-specific therapeutic targets are highlighted and future perspectives are discussed.
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