Age‐Dependent Impairment in Endothelial Function and Arterial Stiffness in Former High Class Male Athletes Is No Different to That in Men With No History of Physical Training

Abstract

Background Physical activity is generally considered to exert positive effects on the cardiovascular system in humans. However, surprisingly little is known about the delayed effect of professional physical training performed at a young age on endothelial function and arterial stiffness in aging athletes. The present study aimed to assess the impact of long‐lasting professional physical training (endurance and sprint) performed at a young age on the endothelial function and arterial stiffness reported in older age in relation to glycocalyx injury, prostacyclin and nitric oxide production, inflammation, basal blood lipid profile, and glucose homeostasis. Methods and Results This study involved 94 male subjects with varied training backgrounds, including young athletes (mean age ∼25 years), older former high class athletes (mean age ∼60 years), and aged‐matched untrained control groups. Aging increased arterial stiffness, as reflected by an enhancement in pulse wave velocity, augmentation index, and stiffness index ( P <10 −4 ), as well as decreased endothelial function, as judged by the attenuation of flow‐mediated vasodilation ( FMD ) in the brachial artery ( P =0.03). Surprisingly, no effect of the training performed at a young age on endothelial function and arterial stiffness was observed in the former athletes. Moreover, no effect of training performed at a young age ( P >0.05) on blood lipid profile, markers of inflammation, and glycocalyx shedding were observed in the former athletes. Conclusions Our study clearly shows that aging, but not physical training history, represents the main contributing factor responsible for decline in endothelial function and increase in arterial stiffness in former athletes.