Enhanced cardiovascular hemodynamics in endurance-trained postmenopausal women athletes.
OBJECTIVE
We sought to determine whether older women athletes who had habitually performed vigorous endurance exercise training had higher stroke volumes and cardiac outputs than sedentary postmenopausal women during maximal exercise.


METHODS
Seventeen endurance-trained, postmenopausal women athletes (age 65 +/- 4 yr; VO2max 2.11 +/- 0.31 L x min(-1), 38.3 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1)) and 14 sedentary, postmenopausal women (age 63 +/- 5 yr; VO2max 1.41 +/- 0.22 L x min(-1), 23.7 +/- 3.5 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1)) performed maximal treadmill exercise while cardiac output (via acetylene rebreathing) and other cardiovascular hemodynamics were measured. Approximately half of the subjects in each group were on hormone replacement therapy (HRT).


RESULTS
The greater VO2max of the athletes was the result of a greater cardiac output (12.8 +/- 1.6 vs. 9.3 +/- 1.4 L x min(-1)) resulting from their significantly larger stroke volume (80 +/- 10 vs 57 +/- 10 mL) at maximal exercise. There were no significant differences in maximal cardiac output or maximal stroke volume related to HRT status in the sedentary women or athletes.


CONCLUSIONS
These data indicate that endurance-trained, competitive, postmenopausal women have higher stroke volumes and cardiac outputs during maximal exercise, than their sedentary peers. However, these data suggest that HRT may not affect maximal CV function in sedentary or endurance-trained postmenopausal women.
McCole
S D
SD
Division of Cardiology, University of Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. smccole@uwm.edu
Brown
M D
MD
Moore
G E
GE
Zmuda
J M
JM
Cwynar
J D
JD
Hagberg
J M
JM
D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D002302:Cardiac Output / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006439:Hemodynamics; D020249:Hormone Replacement Therapy; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D010807:Physical Endurance; D017698:Postmenopause; D013318:Stroke Volume / Q000502:physiology*