Magnitude of hypotension after acute aerobic exercise: A systematic review of randomized trials

Abstract

The objective was to carry out a systematic review of randomized trials on the magnitude of post exercise hypotension (PEH) in adults. 1336 studies were retrieved from PubMed, Scielo and Lilacs, after searching "exercise" and "hypotension". 1268 papers were excluded by titles, 37 by abstracts, 10 were nonrandomized, 1 by repeating data, leaving 20. These studies were evaluated according to the randomization, blinding, allocation concealment, analysis by intention to treat and quantitatively by the Jadad Scale. The average reductions in systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) of the normotensive were lower than hypertensive (−9±3 vs. −11±6 mmHg and −12±2 vs. −8±6 mmHg, respectively) in both groups, active individuals had greater PEH than sedentary individuals (normotensive SBP −10±4 vs. −8±1 mmHg, PAD −5±1 vs. −4±1; hypertensive SBP −16±4 vs −9±2 mmHg; PAD −7±4 vs. −5±3 mmHg, respectively). In randomized studies the magnitude of PEH ranged from −4 to −19 mmHg for SBP and −2 to −9 mm Hg for DBP values according to the sample characteristics (blood pressure early stages, gender and level of physical activity) and the exercise protocols selected (i.e., there is no consensus on the influence of duration and intensity).