[Value of the measurement of pulse wave velocity in high level sportsmen. Practical applications].

Arterial compliance is an essential factor of cardio-vascular performance during physical exercise, as cardiac out-put, and peripheral arterial resistance. New not bloody investigations methods allow now to study more easily this clinical data. We wished to compare arterial compliance of high level sportsmen sample, with sedentary people sample. We measured the arterial pulse wave velocity at the arm, between sub-collarbone artery and radial artery. We used doppler with continuous transmission and probe of 8 MHz. Sedentary people are sixteen men with twenty years of average age, and physical activity not so much than two hours for a week. Sportmen are thirteen, with seventeen and a half years of average age, and physical activity about ten hours for a week. The study of the pulse wave velocity showed significative differences between the two samples. 5,09 m/s on average for sedentary people; 7,49m/s on average for sportsmen. This difference is significant. The pulse wave velocity of people submitted to repetitive physical exercises increase so, arterial compliance must be decreased. The decrease of arterial compliance is the same with people with high blood-pressure. She might be responsible for cardiac hypertrophy-dilatation, frequent with high level sportsmen. She might be accompanied by structural deteriorations of arterial wall, confirming that high blood pressure of repetitive efforts is an attack for cardio-vascular system.