The acute effect of passively assisted trunk stretching on central arterial stiffness and blood pressure in middle-aged to older adults

Kylee West; Kaelyn Spears; Barry Joyner; Collin Smith; Nathaniel D M Jenkins; Gregory J Grosicki; Nicholas J Siekirk

doi:10.1007/s00421-023-05389-9

The acute effect of passively assisted trunk stretching on central arterial stiffness and blood pressure in middle-aged to older adults

Eur J Appl Physiol. 2024 Jan 13. doi: 10.1007/s00421-023-05389-9. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Kylee West^{1

2}, Kaelyn Spears², Barry Joyner³, Collin Smith⁴, Nathaniel D M Jenkins^{5

6}, Gregory J Grosicki², Nicholas J Siekirk^{7

8}

Affiliations

¹ Biomechanics Laboratory, Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, Georgia Southern University, P.O. Box 8076, Statesboro, GA, 30460, USA.
² Biodynamics and Human Performance Center, Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, Georgia Southern University, Savannah, GA, USA.
³ Center for Rehabilitation and Independent Living, Waters College of Health Professions, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA.
⁴ Internal Medicine, East Georgia Regional Medical Center, Statesboro, GA, USA.
⁵ Integrative Laboratory of Applied Physiology and Lifestyle Medicine, Department of Health and Human Physiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
⁶ Francois M. Abboud Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
⁷ Biomechanics Laboratory, Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, Georgia Southern University, P.O. Box 8076, Statesboro, GA, 30460, USA. nsiekirk@georgiasouthern.edu.
⁸ Center for Rehabilitation and Independent Living, Waters College of Health Professions, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA. nsiekirk@georgiasouthern.edu.

PMID: 38217670
DOI: 10.1007/s00421-023-05389-9

Abstract

Purpose: We examined the effects of acute trunk stretching on central arterial stiffness and central and peripheral blood pressure in middle-aged to older adults.

Methods: Twenty-eight middle-aged to older adults (14M/14F, 72 ± 7 years, 28.5 ± 5.3 kg/m²) completed this randomized, controlled, crossover design trial. We measured carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cf-PWV) and central and peripheral blood pressures (BP) before and after a single bout of passively assisted trunk stretching (i.e., five rounds of six 30-s stretches) and a time-matched seated control visit (i.e., 30-min). Changes (Δ; post - pre) in cf-PWV and central and peripheral BP were compared between visits and sexes using separate linear mixed-effects models controlling for baseline values.

Results: Compared with seated control, central (systolic: - 3 ± 7 mmHg; diastolic: - 2 ± 5 mmHg) and peripheral (systolic: - 2 ± 8 mmHg; diastolic: - 1 ± 4 mmHg) BP were reduced following acute trunk stretching (p_s ≤ 0.001). Between-visit differences for ∆cf-PWV (stretch: 0.09 ± 0.61 m/s; control: 0.37 ± 0.68 m/s, p = 0.038) were abolished when controlling for change in mean arterial pressure (∆MAP) (p = 0.687). The main effects of sex were detected for changes in systolic BPs (p_s ≤ 0.029); more males (n = 13) saw BP reductions than females (n = 7).

Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the superiority of acute trunk stretching over passive sitting of equated duration for BP in middle-aged to older adults, with an appreciable effect in males compared to females.

Keywords: Aging; Cardiovascular disease; Exercise; Flexibility; Vascular.

Grants and funding

Research Seed Funding Award/Georgia Southern University