Serum tissue plasminogen activator after cycling with blood flow restriction.

Abstract

Blood flow restriction exercise (BFRE) is a therapeutic approach traditionally used to facilitate muscular strength and hypertrophy. Emerging evidence has identified its benefits on other systems and metabolic processes. The emphasis of this study was to examine potential impact of BFRE on serum levels of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). Eighteen healthy adults (nine males, nine females; mean age: 34.44 ± 9.97) were randomized into groups to perform cycling either with or without blood flow restriction (BFR). Blood samples were collected before and after exercise to analyze serum concentrations of tPA. Significance in tPA between exercise groups did not reach significance but did show a large effect size (0.14) in favor of the BFR group. The trend suggests that this study was underpowered to reach significance. Further research should continue examining the impact of BFRE on serum levels of tPA. This methodology could be adapted to other populations to increase generalizability of results.