title: Restricted Blood Flow Exercise in Sedentary, Overweight African-American Females May Increase Muscle Strength and Decrease Endothelial Function and Vascular Autoregulation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Exercise with partially restricted blood flow is a low-load, low-intensity resistance training regimen which may have the potential to increase muscle strength in the obese, elderly and frail who are unable to do high-load training. Restricted blood flow exercise has also been shown to affect blood vessel function variably and can, therefore, contribute to blood vessel dysfunction. This pilot study tests the hypothesis that unilateral resistance training of the leg extensors with partially restricted blood flow increases muscle strength and decreases vascular autoregulation.
  
  
  METHODS
  The subjects were nine normotensive, overweight, young adult African-Americans with low cardiorespiratory fitness who underwent unilateral training of the quadriceps' femoris muscles with partially restricted blood flow at 30% of the 1-repetition maximum (1-RM) load for 3 weeks. The 1-RM load and post-occlusion blood flow to the lower leg (calf) were measured during reactive hyperemia.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 1-RM load increased in the trained legs from 77 ± 3 to 84 ± 4 kg (P< 0.05) in the absence of a significant effect on the 1-RM load in the contralateral untrained legs (P> 0.1). Post-occlusion blood flow decreased significantly in the trained legs from 19 ± 2 to 13 ± 2 mL· min-1· dL-1(P< 0.05) and marginally in the contralateral untrained legs from 18 ± 2 to 16 ± 1 mL· min-1· dL-1(P= 0.09). Changes in post-occlusion blood flow to the skin overlying the trained and the contralateral untrained muscles were not significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results demonstrate that restricted blood flow exercise, which results in significant gains in muscle strength, may produce decrements in endothelial dysfunction and vascular autoregulation. Future studies should determine whether pharmacopuncture plays a role in treatments for such blood vessel dysfunction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Recreation, Human Performance & Leisure Studies and Exercise Science & Human Nutrition Laboratory, Howard University Cancer Centre, Washington DC, United States of America.
authors.forename: Vernon
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bond
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Howard College of Medicine & Howard University Hospital, Washington DC, United States of America.
authors.forename: Bryan Heath
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Curry
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Howard University Hospital, Washington DC, United States of America.
authors.forename: Krishna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Pharmacology, AUA College of Medicine & Manipal University, Antigua and Barbuda.
authors.forename: Sudhakar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pemminati
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioural Sciences and Neuroscience, AUA College of Medicine, Antigua and Barbuda.
authors.forename: Vasavi Rakesh
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: Gorantla
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Physiology, AUA College of Medicine, Antigua and Barbuda.
authors.forename: Kishan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kadur
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Physiology, AUA College of Medicine, Antigua and Barbuda.
authors.forename: Richard Mark
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Millis
keywords:  quadriceps femoris;  resistance training;  skeletal muscle; Kaatsu