Evaluation Of Cardiovascular Parameters In Elderly Hypertensive Individuals Who Practice Lian Gong Or Walking

Abstract

Introduction: Lian Gong (LG) consists of two parts: the first part deals with the prevention and treatment of pain in the cervical region, shoulders, back, lumbar region, gluteus, and legs; and the second deals with the prevention and treatment of pain in the joints of the upper and lower limbs, tenosynovitis, and functional disorders of the organs. This study aimed to evaluate the main cardiovascular parameters in elderly hypertensive patients before and after LG exercises or walking. Methods: The study included 98 elderly hypertensive patients aged 60-75 and they were divided into two groups: Group 1 (G₁) practiced LG (n=42) and Group 2 (G₂) walking (n=56). The cardiovascular parameters Blood Pressure (Systolic and Diastolic), heart rate (HT), respiratory frequency (RF), Temperature (T) and oxygen saturation (SaO₂) were analyzed in the first and fourth week of evaluation. Results: The results showed that practice LG showed lower BP, both before and after practicing the exercise in comparison with those who practice walking exercise. At rest, the data related to HR and FR were higher in G₁ than in G₂. After the exercises, G₂ showed higher HR and RF than G₁.  As for the data concerning SaO₂, it was found that G₂ showed higher SaO₂ at rest than G₁ and these differences were statistically significant. The comparative analysis of the cardiovascular parameters before and after LG exercise or walking in the first week of evaluation showed that there was a statistically significant reduction in the parameters BP, HR and RF after LG, while SaO₂ increased significantly. In contrast, after walking there was a statistically significant reduction in BP and SaO₂, but HR and RF increased significantly. Conclusion LG induced a more intense hypotensive effect than walking. Thus, it is imperative that further studies be conducted to elucidate the mechanisms involved in the regulation of BP after practicing LG.