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  • Title: Calf exercise-induced vasodilation is blunted in healthy older adults with increased walking performance fatigue.
    Author: Gonzales JU, Defferari E, Fisher A, Shephard J, Proctor DN.
    Journal: Exp Gerontol; 2014 Sep; 57():1-5. PubMed ID: 24786722.
    Abstract:
    Vascular aging as measured by central arterial stiffness contributes to slow walking speed in older adults, but the impact of age-related changes in peripheral vascular function on walking performance is unclear. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that calf muscle-specific vasodilator responses are associated with walking performance fatigue in healthy older adults. Forty-five older (60-78yrs) adults performed a fast-paced 400m walk test. Twelve of these adults exhibited fatigue as defined by slowing of walking speed (≥0.02m/s) measured during the first and last 100m segments of the 400m test. Peak calf vascular conductance was measured following 10min of arterial occlusion using strain-gauge plethysmography. Superficial femoral artery (SFA) vascular conductance response to graded plantar-flexion exercise was measured using Doppler ultrasound. No difference was found for peak calf vascular conductance between adults that slowed walking speed and those that maintained walking speed (p>0.05); however, older adults that slowed walking speed had a lower SFA vascular conductance response to calf exercise (at highest workload: slowed group, 2.4±0.9 vs. maintained group, 3.6±0.9ml/kg/min/mmHg; p<0.01). Moreover, the initial increase in SFA vascular conductance from rest to exercise was positively correlated with the change in walking speed for all adults (rho=0.41, p=0.005). In conclusion, these results suggest that calf exercise hemodynamics are associated with walking performance fatigability in older adults.
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