Cardiovascular Considerations in the Older Patient
Original Editor - Wendy Walker
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Changes in Heart Rate[edit | edit source]
- One of the common means of establishing a guideline for change in maximal heart rate is the following formula[1]:
Causes of changes in heart rate[edit | edit source]
The reduction in maximal heart rate is thought to be due to changes in the autonomic nervous system[2][3]
Consequences of reduction in maximum heart rate[edit | edit source]
- Smaller aerobic workload possible - ie. reduction in the extent of cardiac exertion that can be tolerated for a period of time
- Slower aerobic performance - eg. 90 year olds completing the New York City marathon typically do so in 7-8 hours
Changes in vascular tissues[edit | edit source]
Stiffer vascular tissues[edit | edit source]
Changes in connective tissue as we age include:
increased crosslinking of collagen
loss of elastin
thickening of the basement membrane in the capillary walls[4]
These result in the heart and blood vessels being stiffer and less compliant[5], and this in turn leads to increased blood pressure[6][7];
it is noticeable that the majority of patients who 70 years of age or older are likely to be taking antihypertensive medication.
The thickening in the basement membrane of the capillary walls means that the delivery of oxygen and nutrients is slower than in younger people, although there is some evidence to suggest that this effect is modifiable with high levels of exercise[8]
Reduction in contractitility of vascular walls[edit | edit source]
Sub Heading 3[edit | edit source]
Recent Related Research (from Pubmed)[edit | edit source]
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References[edit | edit source]
References will automatically be added here, see adding references tutorial.
- ↑ Ehrman JK, Gordon PM, Visich PS, Keteyian SJ: Clinical exercise physiology, Champaign, IL, 2009, Human Kinetics
- ↑ Heckman GA, McKelvie RS: Cardiovascular aging and exercise in healthy older adults. Clin J Sport Med 18:479-485, 2008
- ↑ Brown SP, Miller WC, Eason JM: Exercise physiology: basis of human movement and disease, Baltimore, MD, 2006, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
- ↑ Vaitkevicius PV, Fleg JL, Engel JH, et al: Effects of age and aerobic capacity on arterial stiffness in healthy adults. Circulation 88(4 Pt 1):1456–1462, 1993
- ↑ Franzoni F, Galetta F, Morizzo C, et al: Effects of age and physical fitness on microcirculatory function. Clin Sci (Lond) 106(3):329–335, 2004
- ↑ Kasch FW, Boyer JL, Van Camp S, et al: Cardiovascular changes with age and exercise. A 28–year longitudinal study. Scand J Med Sci Sports 5(3):147–151, 1995
- ↑ Ferreira I, Twisk JW, Stehouwer CD, et al: Longitudinal changes in VO2max: associations with carotid IMT and arterial stiffness. Med Sci Sports Exerc 35(10):1670–1678, 200
- ↑ Schroeder TE, Hawkins SA, Hyslop D, et al: Longitudinal change in coronary heart disease risk factors in older runners. Age Ageing 36(1):57–62, 2007