Effects of acute hypoxia on the oxygen uptake kinetics of older adults during cycling exercise

Pulmonary oxygen uptake, heart rate (HR), and deoxyhemoglobin (HHb) kinetics were studied in a group of older adults exercising in hypoxic conditions. Fourteen healthy older adults (aged 66 ± 6 years) performed 4 exercise sessions that consisted of (i) an incremental test to exhaustion on a cycloergometer while breathing normoxic room air (fractional inspired oxygen (FiO(2)) = 20.9% O(2)); (ii) an incremental test to exhaustion on a cycloergometer while breathing hypoxic room air (FiO(2) = 15% O(2)); (iii) 3 repeated square wave cycling exercises at moderate intensity while breathing normoxic room air; and (iv) 3 repeated square wave cycling exercises at moderate intensity while breathing hypoxic room air. During all exercise sessions, pulmonary gas exchange was measured breath-by-breath; HHb was determined on the vastus lateralis muscle by near-infrared spectroscopy; and HR was collected beat-by-beat. The pulomary oxygen uptake kinetics became slower in hypoxia (31 ± 9 s) than in normoxia (27 ± 7 s) because of an increased mismatching between O(2) delivery to O(2) utilization at the level of the muscle. The HR and HHb kinetics did not change between hypoxia and normoxia.