Magnitude and time course of arterial vascular adaptations to inactivity in humans

Abstract

We demonstrate that extensive arterial vascular adaptations occur within 3-8 wk of inactivity in humans. We put forth the hypothesis that the diameter decrease represents an adaptation to a lack of variation in peak shear stress. Furthermore, an enhanced flow-mediated dilation in deconditioned arteries implies that functional vascular adaptations to inactivity are not simply the inverse of adaptations to exercise.