PURPOSE:
Endothelial dysfunction appears to have a central role in the progression to high blood pressure by reducing nitric oxide bioavailability and increasing oxidant stress. Flow mediated dilation (FMD) is the most common non-invasive test to assess endothelial function. It has been reported that traditional lower-extremity exercise modalities are associated with improvements on FMD, however, limited research has evaluated the effects of upper body exercise, such as boxing training, on endothelial function. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to determine the response of brachial and popliteal FMD within a prehypertensive population after 6 weeks of boxing training.
METHODS: 
A total of 14 prehypertensive participants were randomly allocated to a boxing intervention or a control group. The boxing training intervention consisted of a 6-week program with 3 visits per week in non-consecutive days. Each session was made up of 10 rounds of 3 minutes and 1-minute rest in between rounds. The control group included a 6-week flexibility and balance training with 3 visits per week made up of 10 minutes of dynamic stretching, 5 minutes of unipedal stance, and 5 minutes of upper limb stretching. FMD of the brachial and popliteal artery were measured with a 12-MHz linear phase array ultrasound transducer before and after the intervention.
RESULTS: After the intervention, the boxing group showed a significant increment on brachial FMD by 2.4% (p = 0.001) and popliteal FMD by 2.8% (p = 0.043), while no statistical differences were found in the control group for brachial FMD (p = 0.181) and popliteal FMD (p = 0.538).
CONCLUSION: Boxing training is a suitable exercise alternative to improve endothelial function in the upper and lower extremity of individuals with prehypertension.
Category: Vascular Function
Authors: Paulina Caraveo, Francisco Morales-Acuna, Andrea Rico, Carlos Rehbein, Manuel Gomez, Lisa Rodriguez, Alvaro N. Gurovich.
Institution: The University of Texas at El Paso
Sponsor: Alvaro N. Gurovich, FACSM