Exercise Training Reduced Blood Pressure in Patients with Resistant Hypertension

Exercise has been shown to reduce blood pressure (BP) in patients with essential hypertension. To determine whether an exercise training program could also reduce BP in patients with hypertension labeled as “resistant,” researchers performed a small, randomized trial.

Sixty patients aged 40 to 75 years with diagnosed resistant hypertension were recruited from two centers in Portugal and randomly assigned to a 12-week, moderate-intensity aerobic exercise training program or usual care (control group). The exercise group performed three 40-minute supervised exercise sessions per week.

Twenty-six patients in the exercise group and 27 in the control group completed the study (mean age, 60 years; 45% women). Compared with the control group, those …