Twenty-four hour blood pressure after exercise in patients with coronary artery disease

The objective was to assess the influence of a cardiac rehabilitation training session on blood pressure measured shortly after exercise and during the subsequent 24 h in patients with stable coronary artery disease. Blood pressure was measured conventionally and by use of 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in seven men, mean age 53+/-8 (s.d.) years, after participation in a cardiac rehabilitation session and, in randomised order, on a non-exercise control day. Conventional blood pressure averaged 112+/-7/77+/-5 mm Hg in the sitting position on the control day and was not different at the same time of the day shortly after the patients had participated in a cardiac rehabilitation training session. Standing systolic pressure was lower by 7.8+/-4.3 mm Hg (P < 0.005) after exercise compared to the control situation, but this was not associated with orthostatic symptoms. However, ambulatory monitoring showed no differences in blood pressure with the non-exercise day during the subsequent 24-h period. In conclusion, standing but not sitting blood pressure was slightly lower shortly after a cardiac rehabilitation session, but the postexercise orthostatic hypotension was not sustained during normal activities of daily living.