title: Impact of age on pulmonary artery systolic pressures at rest and with exercise.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  It is not well known if advancing age influences normal rest or exercise pulmonary artery pressures. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the association of increasing age with measurements of pulmonary artery systolic pressure at rest and with exercise.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 467 adults without cardiopulmonary disease and normal exercise capacity (age range: 18-85 years) underwent symptom-limited treadmill exercise testing with Doppler measurement of rest and exercise pulmonary artery systolic pressure.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a progressive increase in rest and exercise pulmonary artery pressures with increasing age. Pulmonary artery systolic pressures at rest and with exercise were 25±5mmHg and 33±9mmHg, respectively, in those <40 years, and 30±5mmHg and 41±12mmHg, respectively, in those ≥70 years. While elevated left-sided cardiac filling pressures were excluded by protocol design, markers of arterial stiffness associated with the age-dependent effects on pulmonary pressures.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data demonstrate that in echocardiographically normal adults, pulmonary artery systolic pressure increases with advancing age. This increase is seen at rest and with exercise. These increases in pulmonary pressure occur in association with decreasing transpulmonary flow and increases in systemic pulse pressure, suggesting that age-associated blood vessel stiffening may contribute to these differences in pulmonary artery systolic pressure.
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic, Department Cardiovascular Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA kane.garvan@mayo.edu.
authors.forename: Garvan C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Kane
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Bangkok Heart Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Arun
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sachdev
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: Hector R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Villarraga
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: Naser M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Ammash
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: Jae K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic, Department Cardiovascular Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: McGoon
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Pellikka
authors.affiliation: Echocardiography Laboratory, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic, Department Cardiovascular Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
authors.forename: Robert B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: McCully
keywords: pulmonary artery systolic pressure; stress echocardiography