The Impact of Physical Activity on Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm: A Scoping Review

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a condition primarily affecting older men, is often asymptomatic but becomes life-threatening if rupture occurs. While AAA risk factors such as age, gender, and smoking are well-studied, physical activity (PA) may also play a critical role in managing AAA progression, though this relationship remains understudied. This scoping review aims to synthesize current knowledge on the impact of PA on AAA, examining safety, physiological effects, and potential protective effects against AAA progression.

A comprehensive scoping review methodology was applied, covering databases from their inception to October 2024, including MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Science. Seven studies meeting the inclusion criteria were analyzed, with intervention designs ranging from cross-sectional to longitudinal studies.

After full-text review of 44 articles, 38 were excluded due to focus on surgical intervention or flow models. The manual screening adding one study, resulting in 7 articles included in this review. PA appears generally safe for individuals with small AAAs, with minimal adverse events reported in most studies, though one study noted a cardiac incident during exercise. PA interventions often improved cardiovascular metrics, including ventilatory threshold and inflammatory markers, yet demonstrated mixed effects on AAA growth. Notably, the protective effect of PA against AAA progression remains inconclusive, requiring further investigation.

This review indicates that moderate PA is generally safe and may provide health benefits for individuals with small AAAs. However, significant knowledge gaps remain, especially regarding the optimal frequency, intensity, and duration of PA, as well as its long-term impact on aneurysm progression. All these issues require objective measurement of PA to develop targeted physical activity guidelines for this population.