Pilates training may reduce ambulatory BP in women with hypertension

A Pilates Method (PM) program lasting for 13 weeks results in a decrease in ambulatory blood pressure (BP) and improvements in autonomic reflex responsiveness among women with hypertension, reports a recent study.

Twenty-eight women with hypertension aged 39‒59 years were randomly assigned to a Pilates (n=14) or a control group (n=14). Participants in the Pilates group completed supervised PM session twice weekly, while those in the control group maintained usual care.

Outcomes assessed were as follows: ambulatory BP monitoring (24-h, daytime, and nighttime), heart rate variability (HRV), autonomic reflex tests (Valsalva ratio, deep breathing, heart rate and BP response to standing, and isometric handgrip), flow-mediated dilation (FMD), and circulating nitric oxide (NO) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS). The investigators then adjusted the analyses for baseline body weight.

All ambulatory BP parameters demonstrated significant group‒time interactions (p≤0.022 for all; η²_p, 0.19–0.31), with greater reductions in the Pilates group (24-h systolic BP: ‒10.3 mm Hg; p=0.009).

Among autonomic reflex tests, only the deep breathing test showed a significant interaction (p<0.001; η²_p = 0.61). HRV indices had no significant change. Likewise, no time or interaction effects was seen in FMD. Women in the control group had decreased NO, which remained stable among those in the Pilates group. Furthermore, NOS decreased in the Pilates group (p<0.001).

“PM appears to be a feasible and safe low-to-moderate-intensity adjunct to pharmacological treatment, with favourable haemodynamic effects,” the investigators said.