Pulse pressure is sometimes referred to as the third number. The first two are your systolic and diastolic pressures that you are familiar with as the upper and lower numbers in your blood pressure readings. Systolic pressure is the pressure in your system when your heart contracts, diastolic is the pressure when your heart relaxes. Normal blood pressure is something like 120/80. Your pulse pressure is the difference between the other two numbers. In the case of normal above, the pulse pressure would be 40, the difference between 120 and 80.
During Exercise
Your systolic number is the measure of pressure when your heart beats and is related to the volume of blood being pushed out of your heart. When you exercise, the demand for circulation is increased and the volume of blood moved with each beat is greater, so your systolic pressure goes up with exercise. Your diastolic pressure also may increase but not as much as your systolic so as a result, your pulse pressure, the difference in the other two numbers, also goes up with exercise.
Significance
More attention is being paid to pulse pressure because it has been shown to be a good predictor of coronary artery disease. In a study of 5,000 men in Europe, those with a pulse pressure greater than 70 had a risk three times higher than men with a pulse pressure less than 50. This is thought to be due to stiffer arteries being more resistant to pulse pressure and creating a higher systolic pressure. Problems like arteriosclerosis and carotid artery stenosis would contribute to this finding.
Athletes
Although we know the benefits of exercise, one of the findings in a 1999 study published in "Hypertension," a journal publication of the American Heart Association, found that athletes who trained with weights developed a higher pulse pressure than their sedentary counterparts. Although it is not clear why it happens, it seems athletes develop a more rigid aortic arch, the main artery that leaves the top of the heart.
Healthy
If you are monitoring your pulse pressure, a goal of 40 is considered normal. Concerns for coronary artery disease increase with your pulse pressure and if you are getting readings above 60, you should talk with your doctor. Also readings below 25 are of concern because is an indicator of low stroke volume in your heart.
