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Publication
The impact of aquatic exercise programs on the immunologic profile of community dwelling older persons: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Evidence shows that physical exercise is important in maintaining an efficient
immune system during ageing. However, there are few studies that test the
impact of aquatic exercise programs on the immune system. This study aims to
analyze the impact of different physical exercise programs in aquatic
environment on the systemic hematological and inflammatory markers of
community dwelling elderly. One hundred and two elderly were randomly
allocated into four groups: a continuous aerobic exercise group (AerG) (n = 25,
71.44 ± 4.84 years); an interval aerobic exercise group (IntG) (n = 28, 72.64 ±
5.22 years); a combined exercise group (ComG) (n = 29, 71.90 ± 5.67 years); a
control group (CG) (n = 20, 73.60 ± 5.25 years). The AerG, IntG and ComG
participants took part in three different aquatic exercise programs over a 28-
weeks period. The CG participants maintained their usual routines during the
same time period. Blood samples were collected from all participants in order to
access hematologic indicators, by means of cell count, and the inflammatory
profile by ELISA. After 28 weeks, significant differences were found for several
hematologic variables in the AerG, IntG and ComG with increases in mean
corpuscular hemoglobulin (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobulin
concentration (MCHC), and hemoglobulin (Hb). Decreases in TNF-α levels
were found for all exercising groups. An increase in IL-10 levels, granulocytes to lymphocytes ratio (GLR) and a decrease in the TNF-α/IL 10 ratio, were found for the IntG. For the ComG decreases were also found
for the TNF-α, IL-1ß/IL-1ra ratios. The present study suggests that aquatic
exercise programs were able to improve the inflammatory profile of the
participants. Those in the exercise intervention groups showed a shift
towards lower pro-inflammatory levels while the non-exercising group
showed the opposite behaviour. The IntG and the ComG aquatic exercise programs appeared to be more effective than the AerG program in decreasing
chronic low-grade inflammation by mediating the production of higher levels of
anti-inflammatory cytokines. However, the differences found between the
exercising groups were small and may not have clinical significance.
Description
Keywords
Physical exercise Aquatic environment Hydrogymnastics Ageing Interleukins Inflammageing
Pedagogical Context
Citation
Farinha C, Ferreira JP, Serrano J, Santos H, Oliveiros B, Silva FM, Cascante-Rusenhack M and Teixeira AM (2022). The impact of aquatic exercise programs on the systemic hematological and inflammatory markers of community dwelling elderly: A randomized controlled trial. Front. Physiol. 13:838580. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2022.838580