Reliability of oscillometric central blood pressure responses to submaximal exercise

BACKGROUND: Central blood pressure responses to exercise may provide clinicians with a superior diagnostic and prognostic tool. However, to be of value in a clinical setting these assessments must be simple to conduct and reliable. OBJECTIVE: Using oscillometric pulse wave analysis (PWA), determine the upper limit for between-day reliability of central SBP (cSBP) and central pressure augmentation (AIx) responses to three progressive stages of submaximal exercise in a cohort of young, healthy participants. METHODS: Fifteen healthy males [25.8 years (SD 5.7), 23.9 kg/m (SD 2.5)] were tested on three different mornings in a fasted state, separated by a maximum of 14 days. Central hemodynamic variables were assessed on the left upper arm. Participants underwent three progressive stages of submaximal cycling at 50 W (low), 100 W (moderate) and 150 W (moderate-hard). RESULTS: During low and moderate-intensity exercise the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) values for cSBP (0.79-0.80) and AIx (0.81-0.85) indicated excellent reliability (ICC > 0.75). For the moderate-hard intensity AIx could not be computed, and the ICC for cSBP was adequate (0.72). CONCLUSION: Findings from this study suggest that, at least in a young, healthy cohort, oscillometric PWA can be used to reliably assess central blood pressure measurements during exercise, up to a moderate intensity. Although further work is required to verify these findings in clinical cohorts, these measurements may potentially provide clinicians with a practical option for obtaining important hemodynamic information beyond that provided by resting peripheral blood pressure.