Acute effects of one-leg standing on arterial stiffness in older women: Role of the vision condition and standing dose

Objective: One-leg standing has been used exclusively for static balance testing and training purposes. We investigated the acute effects of one-leg standing with open or closed eyes on arterial stiffness in older women and explored the role of standing dose in arterial stiffness regulation. Methods: Eighteen older women (60 ± 2 years) underwent non-intervention control (CON), one-leg standing with open eyes for 2 × 3 min (SO2), and one-leg standing with closed eyes for 1 × 3 min (SC1), 2 × 3 min (SC2), and 3 × 3 min trials (SC3) in a randomized self-controlled crossover fashion. Arterial stiffness in the cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) was measured at baseline (BL), immediately (0 min), and 10 and 20 min after standing. CAVI changes from BL in the same trial (⊿CAVI) were used for analysis. Results: ⊿CAVI of the non-standing and standing side did not change with time in CON and SO2 trials. In SC1, SC2, and SC3 trials, ⊿CAVI of the standing side decreased significantly at 0 min compared to their corresponding BL (p < 0.01) and reverted gradually to the BL level afterward, with ⊿CAVI of the non-standing side undergoing no changes. At the time point of 0 min, only in the SC2 trial, ⊿CAVI of the standing side was significantly lower than that of CON (p < 0.01). Conclusion: One-leg standing with closed eyes, but not with open eyes, resulted in transient arterial stiffness improvement in older women. The improvement was restricted to standing leg, and the moderate standing dose had maximal benefit on arterial stiffness.