Cardio Health & Mortality

[Tekward]

Findings: ​

In this cohort study of 122,007 patients (mean [SD] age, 53.4 [12.6] years; 72 173 [59.2%] male) undergoing exercise treadmill testing, cardiorespiratory fitness was inversely associated with all-cause mortality without an observed upper limit of benefit. Extreme cardiorespiratory fitness (2 SDs above the mean for age and sex)was associated with the lowest risk-adjusted all-cause mortality compared with all other performance groups.​

Bottom Line: ​

When compared with the lowest performers, elite performance was associated with an 80%reduction in mortality risk. ​

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2707428

Funny aside, my initial title spell-corrected to "Cardio Health & Morality. Probably not a statistically significant relationship.

 

[samclem]

It shows that those who lived longer were healthy enough to do well on a treadmill test.

 

[Oz investor]

It shows that those who lived longer were healthy enough to do well on a treadmill test.

indeed they won't let me near a treadmill before 2020 , and i am neither obese nor extremely old

 

[Retiree_Having_Fun]

Thank you for posting. Interesting reading - had to lookup what a Cox Proportional Hazards Regression was.

 

[aja8888]

It shows that those who lived longer were healthy enough to do well on a treadmill test.

I'm scheduled for a treadmill run next week (stress test). I must be pushing the outerlimits at 75 years young. It will be my first one ever and hopefully I'll do well enough to be proclaimed healthy.

 

[Tekward]

It shows that those who lived longer were healthy enough to do well on a treadmill test.

The study started with 122K people healthy enough to take the Treadmill Test and then followed mortality over the following years (8.4 median follow-up with over 1.1 million person-years of observation).

 

[Tekward]

I'm scheduled for a treadmill run next week (stress test). I must be pushing the outerlimits at 75 years young. It will be my first one ever and hopefully I'll do well enough to be proclaimed healthy.

Good job on being fit enough for the test. You are a role model.

The test will find your limits while you are being monitored closely. It gave me confidence that I could push myself farther in exercise.

An important finding (page 8) was that cardio fitness was even more beneficial for seniors >70, "Achieving and maintaining very high levels of aerobic fitness may be particularly important in older patients (70 years of age)."

 

[Alan]

I'm scheduled for a treadmill run next week (stress test). I must be pushing the outerlimits at 75 years young. It will be my first one ever and hopefully I'll do well enough to be proclaimed healthy.

My 76 year old friend had one about 3 years back and he said he had a person on each side of him steadying him and ready to catch him should he fall. It made him feel really old, but he is one of the fittest 70 year olds I know and still rides a bike, goes swimming and hill walking.

His particular problem turned out to be the mechanism the body uses in controlling the BP after exercise and his was sometimes dropping too low and staying low for hours.

 

[gauss]

Further evidence suggesting the causal association from cardio fitness to longevity.

Not too surprising given that cardiac related causes are #1 cause of death in US.

Thanks for sharing!

-gauss

 

[JoeWras]

My 76 year old friend had one about 3 years back and he said he had a person on each side of him steadying him and ready to catch him should he fall. It made him feel really old, but he is one of the fittest 70 year olds I know and still rides a bike, goes swimming and hill walking.

His particular problem turned out to be the mechanism the body uses in controlling the BP after exercise and his was sometimes dropping too low and staying low for hours.

That's OK. I had one in the late 80s when I was in my 20s. I found myself there because I became fit and my heart was going through changes, which confused me.

Anyway, despite my fitness and age, I had a "catcher" ready. They also prepared some drugs and powered up the defib, all in my viewing. Talk about feeling old! I joked about it with the doc and he said it was no joking matter. He had patients literally take 5 steps and when they saw the results from that, basically had them ready to prep for catheterization surgery.

This was right after some high profile incidents which caused stress tests to go out of doctors' offices and into specialty practices or hospitals. I guess you could say they were a little liability focused.

BTW: I passed the test. They had the thing ramped up and I was flying in the end.

 

[JoeWras]

One follow up. Earlier, before I retired, I complained that I didn't see enough seniors at our local pool. It worried me because pool work is good cardio when the joints are failing.

I just assumed seniors would be ready to go at 8am (my normal swim time when I w*rked).

Guess what? In retirement, I find myself some mornings not wanting to hit the road at 8am. So I go at 9 or 10. Hey! The place is jammed! Ah ha! They are getting exercise. Good job. Glad to see the pool being used. It is a great deal (huge discount) my city provides. I see all fitness levels, from barely able to water walk, to down right fast swimmers.

ANYTHING is better than zero.

 

[MRG]

I'm scheduled for a treadmill run next week (stress test). I must be pushing the outerlimits at 75 years young. It will be my first one ever and hopefully I'll do well enough to be proclaimed healthy.

Good luck aja. You'll do better at 75 then a did at 45 on my first one.

I'm having my carotid checked with dopler next week and a halter monitor for a week. I didn't ask the cardiologist if I was allowed to jog, normally 20 miles weekly, with the thing on.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Another source saying the same: https://bgr.com/2018/10/19/exercise-health-study-smoking-cardiovascular-disease/ Maybe I need to move a lot more—it’s gotta be easier than quitting smoking 43 years ago

“Being unfit on a treadmill or in an exercise stress test has a worse prognosis, as far as death, than being hypertensive, being diabetic or being a current smoker,” Dr Wael Jaber, a senior author of the research, told CNN. “We’ve never seen something as pronounced as this and as objective as this.

 

[REWahoo]

—it’s gotta be easier than quitting smoking 43 years ago.

Yep. I understand time travel is tough.

 

[Fedup]

I’m sure both of my aunts won’t pass this test, they are both in their early 90s. I’m sure I won’t pass this test either. But I’ve recently bought a National Geographic magazine about the people who live the longest in the world. Most of these people are moderate exerciser, not marathon runner, so there’s hope for me.

 

[txtig]

Last year, due to my high calcium score, my PCP sent me to a cardiologist for a nuclear stress test. This was to be my first ever stress test at age 64.

I was scheduled for a treadmill stress test. When I arrived, the staff told me I was going to have a chemical stress test where the heart is stressed by injection of a chemical rather than by exercise. I later learned this type of test is primarily for patients who are physically unable to take a treadmill test.

I was seated with a group of patients who were also getting chemical stress tests. All of the other patients were much older than I was and in obvious poorer health. I finally inquired to the nurse as to why I was getting the chemical test rather than the treadmill test. She told me that that’s what her paperwork indicated, but she offered to ask the cardiologist if I could take the treadmill test.

They eventually switched me over to the treadmill test, on which I apparently did well enough that the cardiologist told me that my risk was low enough that I wouldn’t need to return for two years.

So, I’m now scheduled for another treadmill test next year at age 66.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I went to the doctor at 50 because I didn’t feel well for months. I was fast walking 8-10 miles a day. She ordered a bunch of tests. One was a chemical stress test. When I got there I said treadmill only because I knew someone fit that had the chemical and felt like she was dying. After much argument they finally did it. Part way through the doctor told me to stop walking and I told him I could go much faster. Then he started yelling you are going to have a stroke. Turns out my heart rate went so high even after I stopped. I have been on a beta blocker ever since. My heart rate was also erratic and I had HBP.

 

[Fedup]

Sound scary that’s why I’m not going to stress test anything. No chemical stress test either.

 

[aja8888]

After reading several posts above, it kind of makes me wonder what to expect next week. I already told them in a phone call that I had a previous hip replacement (9 years ago) and that I tore up my right knee 18 months ago and needed surgery to repair it. That didn't stop them from scheduling this test.

I do a lot of walking regularly but no more jogging/running due to the changed out hip.

I suspect they want to add this stress test data to the two weeks on the heart monitor and carotid artery scan last week. The 30th of this month is when we meet to go over the results.

 

[braumeister]

That didn't stop them from scheduling this test.

It's your own fault, I'm afraid. You never should have told them about that big bequest in your will.

 

[imoldernu]

Am not a doctor, and wouldn't pretend to begin understanding the article, but 13 years ago, at age 69, and after moving into our new home, decided I wanted to use the fitness facilities which are offered as part of our CCRC benefits. In order to do that, I needed a Doctor's okay. My doctor.. "Hmmm. you have a slight heart murmur, so I'll refer you to the local hospital for a stress test."

As mentioned in a previous post... treadmill with four people holding on to me with a harness.... Seemed like an hour... faster and faster... doctor looking at a meter... ... heart beate was low.. and he wanted it to be at a certain level, so kept going. I was sweating and exhausted... finally, though not getting to where he wanted, they stopped and helped me to the hospital bed.. Everyone left the room, and I was alone, ina daze. Suddenly a loud, loud alarm went off and ten people crowded in with oxygen and some kind of big electric machine that they hooked me to. About an hour before I was back to normal.

So, health before this? Excellent. Biking, pool laps, and much physical activity. Strong, surfing, line dancing, and apparently very healthy.

Now, @82 still apparently healthy... average cholesterol, BP 120/70...

But... one year ago diagnosed with AFIB. Asymptomatic, as no shortness of breath, chest pains or any unusual stress. Just a bump, bump, bump, diddily, diddly bump. Don't feel it at ll, and can only tell with a stethoscope.

The point? No point... Just one lesson learned... "I'll never, ever take a treadmill stress test again.

Probably an "anomaly", but I don't need any more "anomalies".

 

[Fedup]

I’m thinking of an Elton John song with this thread.

 

[razztazz]

Am not a doctor, and wouldn't pretend to begin understanding the article, but 13 years ago, at age 69, and after moving into our new home, decided I wanted to use the fitness facilities which are offered as part of our CCRC benefits. In order to do that, I needed a Doctor's okay. My doctor.. "Hmmm. you have a slight heart murmur, so I'll refer you to the local hospital for a stress test."

As mentioned in a previous post... treadmill with four people holding on to me with a harness.... Seemed like an hour... faster and faster... doctor looking at a meter... ... heart beate was low.. and he wanted it to be at a certain level, so kept going. I was sweating and exhausted... finally, though not getting to where he wanted, they stopped and helped me to the hospital bed.. Everyone left the room, and I was alone, ina daze. Suddenly a loud, loud alarm went off and ten people crowded in with oxygen and some kind of big electric machine that they hooked me to. About an hour before I was back to normal.

So, health before this? Excellent. Biking, pool laps, and much physical activity. Strong, surfing, line dancing, and apparently very healthy.

Now, @82 still apparently healthy... average cholesterol, BP 120/70...

But... one year ago diagnosed with AFIB. Asymptomatic, as no shortness of breath, chest pains or any unusual stress. Just a bump, bump, bump, diddily, diddly bump. Don't feel it at ll, and can only tell with a stethoscope.

The point? No point... Just one lesson learned... "I'll never, ever take a treadmill stress test again.

Probably an "anomaly", but I don't need any more "anomalies".

I've had 3 of those years ago for various reasons. Now I am in my 60's. I will not take any test that requires me to sign a form to acknowledge and take pull responsibility for the fact that the test might cause heart attack, stroke, or death unless I am already at some immediate risk of something as bad or worse. Not letting doctors go spelunking.

 

[PatrickA5]

Seems to me these findings proved the obvious. If your heart is in great shape, you're less likely to die. Considering heart disease is the leading cause of death, it's less likely you'll die early if you don't have heart disease. Duh.

I had a treadmill nuclear stress test back in '15 and aced it. My 24 hour holter monitor test was perfect. It wasn't until I decided to do a cheap heart CT Scan that I found out I had CAD. A follow up Heart Cath confirmed it.

 

[Fedup]

Not true, my SIL has a neighbor died at 62 while on a treadmill exercising. Many marathoners died before the finishing line too. I did a bit of research on this because one of my kids want to run for some sort of marathon.