Abstract

SA.09.05

Dynamic Vessel Analysis – a preventive medicinal longitudinal investigation of a sports group

Kneser M.^1,4, Schielke E.², Pokorny J.¹, Bartels W.², Kohlmann T.³, Tost F.^1
1Klinik und Poliklinik für Augenheilkunde, ²Institut für Sportwissenschaft, ³Institut für Community Medicine, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt Universität Greifswald; ⁴Zentrum für Augenheilkunde, Universität zu Köln 

Objective: A positive effect of physical exercise on health is generally acknowledged. For the practical implementation of this, individual advice and long term motivation are decisive. Measurable success can be an important motivation. Using Dynamic Vessel Analysis we have investigated from the point of view of preventive medicine the consequences of sporting activities.
Methods: 37 subjects (38-67y), who had previously undertaken little or no sporting activity at all, were recruited for a sports group which then trained under the supervision of a professional coach. The sporting activity of participants was documented. At the beginning (n=37), after 5 months (n=33/37), and after 9 months (n=15/37) of training in this sports group, the retinal microcirculation of the subjects was investigated by DVA, and fitness was determined ergometrically.
Results: The ergometric measurements showed a significant training-dependant growth in performance. Those subjects who had increased their work-out time by at least 1.5 h/week showed by DVA measurement an increase of the reactiveness of the microcirculation (p=0.07). This could not be demonstrated for those who trained for less than 1.5 h/week.
Conclusions: The preventive results of sporting activity in middle and advanced age are dependant on the amount of activity, and can also be assessed by DVA measurement of retinal microcirculation. This correlates with the recently published Follow Up Data of the Beaver Dam Eye Study (Br J Opthamol 2006; 90: 1461-1463), which postulated a protective effect of physical activity on the manifestation of age dependant macula degeneration.

Copyright: Porstmann Kongresse GmbH. All rights reserved. Impressum, Disclaimer.