Key result
A 6-month static stretching intervention significantly improved vascular endothelial function and arterial stiffness, though these effects were reversed after a 6-month detraining period.
Why the study?
Does a 6-month static stretching intervention improve vascular endothelial function and arterial stiffness in healthy, non-smoking, premenopausal women aged ≥40 years?
RCT (n=22)
Randomly assigned
Does a 6-month static stretching intervention improve vascular endothelial function and arterial stiffness in healthy, non-smoking, premenopausal women aged ≥40 years?
A static stretching intervention improves vascular endothelial function and arterial stiffness in healthy premenopausal women, but continuous training is required to maintain these cardiovascular benefits.
May support adjunctive stretching for endothelial health in middle-aged women; leaves open need for larger RCTs before practice change.
PURPOSE: Maintenance and enhancement of vascular endothelial function contribute to the prevention of cardiovascular disease and prolong a healthy life expectancy. Given the reversible nature of vascular endothelial function, interventions to improve this function might prevent arteriosclerosis. Accordingly, we studied the effects of a 6-month static stretching intervention on vascular endothelial function (reactive hyperaemia peripheral arterial tonometry index: RH-PAT index) and arterial stiffness (brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity: baPWV) and investigated the reversibility of these effects after a 6-month detraining period following intervention completion. METHODS: The study evaluated 22 healthy, non-smoking, premenopausal women aged ≥40 years. Subjects were randomly assigned to the full-intervention (n = 11; mean age: 48.6 ± 2.8 years) or a half-intervention that included a control period (n = 11; mean age: 46.9 ± 3.6 years). RESULTS: Body flexibility and vascular endothelial function improved significantly after 3 months of static stretching. In addition to these improvements, arterial stiffness improved significantly after a 6-month intervention. However, after a 6-month detraining period, vascular endothelial function, flexibility, and arterial stiffness all returned to preintervention conditions, demonstrating the reversibility of the obtained effects. CONCLUSION: A 3-month static stretching intervention was found to improve vascular endothelial function, and an additional 3-month intervention also improved arterial stiffness. However, these effects were reversed by detraining.
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Shinno et al. (2017) conducted an RCT in Healthy (n=22). Static stretching vs. Half-intervention (control period) was evaluated on Vascular endothelial function (RH-PAT index) and arterial stiffness (baPWV). A 6-month static stretching intervention significantly improved vascular endothelial function and arterial stiffness, though these effects were reversed after a 6-month detraining period.
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