Post-exercise hypotension and nocturnal blood pressure decline in medicated hypertensive patients: a relational investigation

Background Post-exercise hypotension is a recognized acute benefit of aerobic exercise in hypertension management; however, its relationship with nocturnal blood pressure dipping—an important marker of cardiovascular risk—remains unclear, particularly in medicated hypertensive individuals. Objective To analyze whether there is an association between the magnitude of post-exercise hypotension and nocturnal blood pressure dipping patterns in medicated hypertensive patients. Methods Twenty medicated hypertensive adults were selected. After resting blood pressure measurements, participants underwent treadmill exercise. Blood pressure was monitored post-exercise for 60 min, and subsequently, nocturnal blood pressure dipping was assessed through ambulatory monitoring. Correlations between post-exercise hypotension and nocturnal dipping were analyzed statistically. Results No significant associations were found between the magnitude of post-exercise hypotension at 60 min and the patterns of nocturnal blood pressure dipping, both for systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The correlation coefficients (r) were − 0.222 ( p = 0.348) and − 0.229 ( p = 0.331) for systolic blood pressure, and − 0.040 ( p = 0.867) and − 0.054 ( p = 0.822) for diastolic blood pressure, in absolute and relative values, respectively. Conclusions The patterns of nocturnal blood pressure dipping are not directly related to the magnitude of post-exercise hypotension in medicated hypertensive individuals.