Active Lifestyle can Contribute to Attenuation of Cardiac Autonomic Dysfunction in Adolescent Offspring of Hypertensive Parents.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the behavior of the cardiac autonomic nervous system in adolescents with family history of hypertension at different levels of physical activity. The sample was composed for 162 adolescents who were divided into 2 groups: (a) offspring of normotensive; and (b) offspring of hypertensive that were subdivided into low and high levels of physical activity. The subjects underwent the following evaluations: anthropometric, level of physical activity, sexual maturation, sleep quality index, blood pressure, and heart rate variability. Significant differences (P<0.05) was observed at RMSSD, PNN50, Total Variance, HF, and LF. The findings indicate the practice of physical activity has a protector function on the cardiovascular system, which was linked to the decrease in sympathetic modulation along with a greater vagal response in adolescents with normotensive or hypertensive parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]