Usefulness of Exercise-Induced Hypertension as Predictor of Chronic Hypertension in Adults After Operative Therapy for Aortic Isthmic Coarctation in Childhood

Chronic hypertension is a major concern in adults who have undergone resection of coarctation of the aorta (CoA) in childhood. In otherwise healthy subjects, exercise-induced hypertension is prognostic for chronic hypertension; however, the prognostic value in patients with CoA remains unknown. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the predictive value of exercise-induced hypertension for chronic hypertension in these patients. In the present prospective follow-up study, 74 patients with CoA (58% men, age 30.9 ± 9.5 years) underwent ambulatory blood pressure (BP) monitoring and exercise testing twice from 2001 to 2009 with a follow-up period of 6.3 ± 0.8 years. Hypertension was defined as a mean systolic BP ≥140 mm Hg and/or mean diastolic BP ≥90 mm Hg or the need for antihypertensive treatment. Exercise-induced hypertension was defined as a mean systolic BP of <140 mm Hg and peak exercise systolic BP of ≥200 mm Hg. At baseline, 27 patients (36%) were hypertensive, 11 (15%) had exercise-induced hypertension, and 36 (49%) were normotensive. At follow-up, all 27 hypertensive patients remained hypertensive. Of the 11 with exercise-induced hypertension, 7 (64%) had developed chronic hypertension, and 4 (36%) continued to have exercise-induced hypertension. Of the 36 normotensive patients, 7 (19%) had developed hypertension, 12 (33%) had developed exercise-induced hypertension, and 17 (47%) remained normotensive. On multivariate analysis, baseline maximum exercise systolic BP was independently associated with the mean systolic BP at follow-up (β = 0.13, p = 0.005). In conclusion, the maximum exercise systolic BP was a predictor for chronic hypertension in patients with CoA. These findings demonstrate the clinical importance of exercise-induced hypertension and warrant additional study into the long-term consequences of exercise-induced hypertension and the potential beneficial role of early antihypertensive treatment in adult patients after CoA repair with exercise-induced hypertension.