Cardiovascular response to acute cold stress in non-obese and obese healthy adults

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Obesity is a global epidemic with important health care and financial implications. The cold pressor test (CPT) which is considered to be a sympathy-excitatory manoeuvre is a simple, noninvasive and validated test. The objective of this study was to assess and compare the cardiovascular response to cold pressor test in non-obese and obese healthy adults. METHODS: The study included 400 subjects, of which the study group included 200 adults who had body mass index (BMI) of more than 30 Kg/m, 2 and 200 non-obese adults were enrolled as controls with BMI less than 25 kg/m 2 . The study was conducted for a period of two months. CPT was used to assess cardiac response to acute cold exposure in the present study. Baseline systolic and diastolic blood pressure recording was done using mercury sphygmomanometer during resting condition and following cold pressor test. The results were expressed as mean, standard deviation, and data were analyzed using ANOVA test. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The mean change in systolic blood pressure before and after cold pressor test (CPT) was less in obese (7.12 ± 5.28) as compared to non-obese subjects (10.38 ±6.35). This was statistically significant which indicates impaired sympathetic function in otherwise healthy obese. CONCLUSION: The study concluded that blood pressure response to cold pressor test was reduced in obese compared to non-obese subjects indicating reduced sympathetic activity in healthy obese adults. KEYWORDS: cold pressor test, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, body mass index

Adversity of prolonged extreme cold exposure among adult clients diagnosed with coronary artery diseases: a primer for recommending community health nursing intervention

“…Cold stress stimulates the peripheral nervous system to activate the sympathetic response and synthesize the release of epinephrine and norepinephrine which influences cardiovascular coordination characterized by arteriolar constriction, heart rate hike and increased cardiac contractility resulting in high blood pressure that compromises CAD patients (Choate et al., ; Grewal, Sekhon T., Walia, & Gambhir, ; Silverthorn & Michael, ; Ze‐ Yan, et al., 2010). Davídkovová et al.…”

“…Cold stress stimulates the peripheral nervous system to activate the sympathetic response and synthesize the release of epinephrine and norepinephrine which influences cardiovascular coordination characterized by arteriolar constriction, heart rate hike and increased cardiac contractility resulting in high blood pressure that compromises CAD patients (Choate et al, 2014;Grewal, Sekhon T., Walia, & Gambhir, 2015;Silverthorn & Michael, 2013;Ze-Yan, et al, 2010). Davídkovová et al (2014) and Zhaoxing et al (2012) Eventually, most of the informants said that they had no problems in managing cold stress because they could still manage themselves and they had a full support from their family.…”

The study of cardiovascular sympathetic reactivity in prehypertensives with normal and higher BMI

“…Our study showed significant increase in diastolic blood pressure in prehypertensives with normal individuals as compared to normotensives and prehypertensives with higher BMI.This finding are consisted with findings of Grewal et all. 17 These findings are suggestive of increase in sympathetic reactivity in prehypertensives with normal BMI and decrease in sympathetic reactivity in prehypertensives with higher BMI, Several literatures has found increase in sympathetic activity influence vascular smooth muscle tone, heart rate the adrenal medulla to regulate epinephrine release, which may result in early development of hypertension in this individuals. 18 Thus all the above studies reveal an increase in sympathetic reactivity in prehypertensives with normal BMI as compared to normotensives.…”

Greater muscle strength is associated with reduced autonomic reactivity

“…The autonomic responses to CPT have already been investigated in healthy subjects (Mourot et al, 2009), obese adults (Grewal, Sekhon, Walia, & Gambhir, 2015), as well as in different ethnic groups (Okada et al, 2016) and the effect of gender (Fu, Witkowski, Okazaki, & Levine, 2005). However, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that compared by physical fitness (relative handgrip strength) on physiological responses to CPT.…”