Maximal Exercise Cardiovascular Hemodynamics in Postmenopausal Women Are Independent of Hormone Replacement Therapy 62

We examined the effects of different levels of physical activity (PA) and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on cardiovascular (CV) hemodynamics during maximal exercise in postmenopausal women (64 ± 5 yr). Fourteen sedentary women (SED), 20 PA women, and 17 athletic women (ATH) were studied; 24 women were on HRT and 27 women were not on HRT. Data were collected for body composition (DEXA), VO2max, and cardiac output (acetylene rebreathing) during maximal exercise. HRT status was unrelated to body composition or any of the CV parameters at maximal exercise. ATH had greater maximal cardiac outputs due to higher stroke volumes (SV) and lower total peripheral resistance (TPR) than PA or SED. Table Activity level did not affect SBP or DBP. These data indicate that CV hemodynamics during maximal exercise in postmenopausal women are affected by PA status but are independent of HRT status.