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The intraocular pressure response to lower-body and upper-body isometric exercises is affected by the breathing pattern

Vera, Jesús; Redondo, Beatriz; Perez-Castilla, Alejandro; Koulieris, George-Alex; Jiménez, Raimundo; Garcia-Ramos, Amador

The intraocular pressure response to lower-body and upper-body isometric exercises is affected by the breathing pattern Thumbnail


Authors

Jesús Vera

Beatriz Redondo

Alejandro Perez-Castilla

Raimundo Jiménez

Amador Garcia-Ramos



Abstract

We assessed the mediating role of the breathing pattern adopted during isometric exercise on the intraocular pressure (IOP) response in the back squat and biceps curl exercises. Twenty physically active young adults performed sets of 1-minute isometric effort against a load corresponding to 80% of the maximum load while adopting three different breathing patterns: (i) Constant breathing: 10 cycles consisting of 3 s of inhalation and 3 s of exhalation, (ii) 10-sec Valsalva: 3 cycles consisting of 10 s holding the breath and 10 s of normal breathing, and (iii) 25-sec Valsalva: 2 cycles consisting of 25 s of the Valsalva maneuver and 5 s of normal breathing. A rebound tonometer was used to semi-continuously assesses IOP during the six sets of 1-minute isometric effort (2 exercises × 3 breathing patterns). We found a progressive IOP rise during isometric effort (P < 0.001, η2p = 0.83), with these increases being greater when the breath was held longer (P < 0.001, η2p = 0.58; 25-sec Valsalva > 10-sec Valsalva = constant breathing). There was a trend towards higher IOP values for the back squat in comparison to the biceps curl, although these differences did not reach statistical significance for any breathing pattern (corrected P-value ≥ 0.146, d ≤ 0.69). These findings reveal that glaucoma patients or those at risk should avoid activities in which the breath is held, especially when combined with physical exercise modalities that also promote an increment in IOP values (e.g. isometric contractions).

Citation

Vera, J., Redondo, B., Perez-Castilla, A., Koulieris, G., Jiménez, R., & Garcia-Ramos, A. (2021). The intraocular pressure response to lower-body and upper-body isometric exercises is affected by the breathing pattern. European Journal of Sport Science, 21(6), 879-886. https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2020.1790670

Journal Article Type Article
Online Publication Date Jul 21, 2020
Publication Date 2021
Deposit Date Nov 24, 2020
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal European Journal of Sport Science
Print ISSN 1746-1391
Electronic ISSN 1536-7290
Publisher Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 21
Issue 6
Pages 879-886
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2020.1790670

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