Heat therapy reduces sympathetic activity and improves cardiovascular risk profile in obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Heat therapy reduces sympathetic activity and improves cardiovascular risk profile in obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2019 Sep 04;: Authors: Ely BR, Francisco MA, Halliwill JR, Bryan SD, Comrada LN, Larson EA, Brunt VE, Minson CT Abstract Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) affects up to 15% of women and is associated with increased risk of obesity and cardiovascular disease. Repeated passive heat exposure (termed 'heat therapy') is a lifestyle intervention with the potential to reduce cardiovascular risk in obesity and PCOS. Eighteen obese women with PCOS (Age: 27±4y, body mass index [BMI] 41.3±4.7 kg·m-2) were matched for age and BMI, then assigned to heat therapy (HT; n=9) or time control (CON; n=9). HT subjects underwent 30 one-hour hot tub sessions over 8-10 weeks, while CON subjects did not undergo heat therapy. Muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA), blood pressure, cholesterol, C-reactive protein, and markers of vascular function were assessed at the start (Pre) and end (Post) of 8-10 weeks. These measures included carotid and femoral artery wall thickness and flow-mediated dilation (FMD), measured both before and after 20 min ischemia-20 min reperfusion (IR) stress. HT subjects exhibited reduced MSNA burst frequency (Pre:20±8, Post:13±5 bursts/min, p=0.012), systolic (Pre:124±5, Post:114±6 mmHg; p<0.001) and diastolic blood pressure (Pre:77±6, Post:68±3 mmHg; p&l...
Source: American Journal of Physiology. Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology - Category: Physiology Authors: Tags: Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol Source Type: research