Fibrinolytic Response to Moderate, Exhaustive and Prolonged Exercise in Normal Subjects

Abstract

PREVIOUS studies of the fibrinolytic response to a short period of moderate exercise and intravenous adrenaline in a group of healthy subjects have revealed a small subgroup whose response to these procedures appears to be impaired^1,2. It was suggested that these poor responders could be at risk to conditions such as atherosclerosis and thrombosis and irreversible shock in which defective fibrinolysis has been suggested to be an important aetiological factor^3,4. It seemed possible, however, that our definition of a poor responder was too restrictive, for the fibrinolytic stimulants were submaximal and of relatively short duration. The following communication describes a series of experiments in which healthy subjects aged between 22 and 50 yr (mean, 36 yr) were subjected to moderate, exhaustive and prolonged exercise procedures at intervals of more than a week.