Overview
Current prevention and treatment of high blood pressure (BP) in sarcopenia, by non-pharmacological approaches remain limited and are far from optimal. This randomized control intervention pilot study will provide new evidence of the unexplored relationship between muscle strength and high BP in sarcopenia, and experimentally test the effects of an evidence-based progressive resistance training intervention on BP, while also examining reversibility to identify muscle strength as a non-pharmacological target for BP control in older sarcopenic adults.
Description
This premise of this K01 proposal is to address current gaps in the literature regarding the understanding of high blood pressure due to sarcopenia, and provide new evidence for the discernible relationship between low muscle strength and blood pressure in sarcopenia, and effective non-pharmaceutical treatment approaches. This study will evaluate the feasibility of recruitment, retention, implementation and adherence to an empirically-based progressive resistance training (PRT) intervention to test its effect on blood pressure in a targeted population of older adults with sarcopenia who are randomized (via block permuted scheme) to the PRT intervention. Built within this randomized control intervention design, the investigators will further explore reversibility to examine whether muscle strength serves as an intervention target for blood pressure control in sarcopenic adults, which will be more appropriately tested in subsequently well-powered R-level intervention studies. Physiologically plausible microvascular mechanisms by which the PRT impacts changes in blood pressure will also be explored.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria:
- Adults (men and women) aged 65 years and older (any racial/ethnic background)
- Sedentary or low active adults (not active in strength training)
Exclusion Criteria:
- Subjects with self-report of inability to walk at least mile or walk 400 meters in <15 minutes without sitting
- Subjects who self-reported having a history of a cardiovascular disease (CVD) event or physician diagnosed CVD (heart attack, heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, coronary revascularization, or angina that required overnight hospitalization)
- Subjects history of mental illness (bipolar, multiple personality disorder), or cognitive impairment (e.g., dementia, Alzheimer's)
- Subjects with orthopedic pathology or deformity that prevents exercising safely
- Subjects with active cancer (i.e., recent physician diagnosis, currently receiving treatment, or in remission).
- Subjects with lupus, multiple sclerosis
- Lidocaine allergy
- Participants from the same household as those already enrolled in the study
- Baseline Montreal Cognitive Assessment score of <22 (adjusted by adding 2 points for education 4-9, 1 point for education 10-12 years)
- Current participation in another exercise study
- Currently is- or has a history of abusing alcohol or illicit drugs
- Subjects who plan to move in the next 6 months or take an extended vacation
- Non-english speakers