Resistance Training and Respiratory and Immune-Related Outcomes in Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
10 affiliations
- 1Laboratory of Pulmonary and Exercise Immunology (LABPEI) Evangelical University of Goias (UniEVANGELICA) Anápolis Goiás 75083-515 Brazil.
- 2Laboratory of Pulmonary Rehabilitation Evangelical University of Goias (UniEVANGELICA) Anápolis Goiás 75083-515 Brazil.
- 3Postgraduate Program in Health Science Santo Amaro University (UNISA) São Paulo São Paulo 04829-300 Brazil.
- 4Department of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Federal University of Sao Paulo (UNIFESP) São Paulo São Paulo 04038-032 Brazil unifesp.br.
- 5Escuela de Ingeniería de Construcción y Transporte Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso Avda Brasil 2147 Valparaíso 2362804 Chile ucv.cl.
- 6Department of Sport Nutrition and Fitness Applied and Science University Tehran 13114-16846 Iran.
- 7Laboratory of Pulmonary and Exercise Immunology (LABPEI) Federal University of Sao Paulo (UNIFESP) São José Dos Campos Goiás 12231-280 Brazil unifesp.br.
- 8SPRINT-Sport Physical Activity and Health Research & Innovation Center Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra Coimbra 3045-093 Portugal ipc.pt.
- 9Clinic of Pneumology Medical Center-University of Freiburg Freiburg 79106 Germany uniklinik-freiburg.de.
- 10Brazilian Institute of Teaching and Research (IBEP) Anápolis Goiás 75064-420 Brazil.
Abstract
Age-related declines in pulmonary function and immune regulation increase morbidity and mortality in older adults. Physical activity mitigates these effects, but the isolated impact of resistance training (RT) on lung function and immune responses remains unclear. Sixty-nine older adults without participation for at least one year in structured exercise programs (aged 60-85 years) were recruited from a community extension program at a Brazilian university and randomized into an RT group (n = 31) or a control group (n = 38). This randomized controlled trial evaluated the effects of a 12-week supervised RT program performed three times per week. Primary outcomes included spirometry parameters (FVC, FEV₁, FEV₁/FVC, PEF, and FEF₂₅-₇₅%), respiratory muscle strength (MIP and MEP), and inflammatory biomarkers (IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, and Klotho) in plasma and exhaled breath condensate. Secondary outcomes included handgrip strength, sit-to-stand performance, oxygen saturation, and body composition. Normally distributed outcomes were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA, whereas non-normally distributed longitudinal outcomes were analyzed using the Brunner-Langer approach for factorial longitudinal data. Between-group differences in pre-to-post changes were additionally estimated using bootstrap 95% confidence intervals. No significant Group × Time interactions were observed for spirometric parameters. Significant Group × Time interactions were observed for MIP and MEP; however, significant pre-to-post changes were observed in the control group but not in the RT group. A significant Group × Time interaction was also observed for sit-to-stand performance, with improvement in the control group but not in the RT group. No significant Group × Time interactions were observed for handgrip strength or oxygen saturation. Significant Group × Time interactions were observed for plasma IL-6, IL-10, and Klotho (all p < 0.001), as well as exhaled breath condensate IL-6 (p = 0.006) and Klotho (p = 0.003). In contrast, no significant interactions were observed for plasma TNF-α, exhaled breath condensate IL-10, or exhaled breath condensate TNF-α. Twelve weeks of supervised RT were associated with differential changes in respiratory muscle strength, functional capacity, and selected systemic and airway biomarkers in older adults. Significant Group × Time interactions were observed for MIP, MEP, the 1-min sit-to-stand test, and selected inflammatory and aging-related biomarkers, but not for pulmonary function. These findings indicate that the effects of RT varied across outcomes, rather than demonstrating consistent improvement across all assessed measures. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT06682221.
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BibTeX
@article{silvareis2026resistance,
title = {{Resistance Training and Respiratory and Immune-Related Outcomes in Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial.}},
author = {Anamei Silva-Reis and Rômulo Antonio Costa de Oliveira and Meiry Souza Moura-Maia and Eduarda Teodora Rachid-Wolpp and Naiara Nadia Moreira-Silva and Luis Vicente Franco de Oliveira and Andre Luis Lacerda Bachi and Vicente Aprigliano and Omid Salehian and Regiane Albertini and Guilherme Eustáquio Furtado and Alberto Souza Sá Filho and Daiana Stolz and Rodolfo P Vieira},
journal = {Journal of aging research},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1155/jare/6364341},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42973974},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Resistance Training and Respiratory and Immune-Related Outcomes in Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
AU - Anamei Silva-Reis
AU - Rômulo Antonio Costa de Oliveira
AU - Meiry Souza Moura-Maia
AU - Eduarda Teodora Rachid-Wolpp
AU - Naiara Nadia Moreira-Silva
AU - Luis Vicente Franco de Oliveira
AU - Andre Luis Lacerda Bachi
AU - Vicente Aprigliano
AU - Omid Salehian
AU - Regiane Albertini
AU - Guilherme Eustáquio Furtado
AU - Alberto Souza Sá Filho
AU - Daiana Stolz
AU - Rodolfo P Vieira
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/02
JO - Journal of aging research
DO - 10.1155/jare/6364341
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42973974
AB - Age-related declines in pulmonary function and immune regulation increase morbidity and mortality in older adults. Physical activity mitigates these effects, but the isolated impact of resistance training (RT) on lung function and immune responses remains unclear. Sixty-nine older adults without participation for at least one year in structured exercise programs (aged 60-85 years) were recruited from a community extension program at a Brazilian university and randomized into an RT group (n = 31) or a control group (n = 38). This randomized controlled trial evaluated the effects of a 12-week supervised RT program performed three times per week. Primary outcomes included spirometry parameters (FVC, FEV₁, FEV₁/FVC, PEF, and FEF₂₅-₇₅%), respiratory muscle strength (MIP and MEP), and inflammatory biomarkers (IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, and Klotho) in plasma and exhaled breath condensate. Secondary outcomes included handgrip strength, sit-to-stand performance, oxygen saturation, and body composition. Normally distributed outcomes were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA, whereas non-normally distributed longitudinal outcomes were analyzed using the Brunner-Langer approach for factorial longitudinal data. Between-group differences in pre-to-post changes were additionally estimated using bootstrap 95% confidence intervals. No significant Group × Time interactions were observed for spirometric parameters. Significant Group × Time interactions were observed for MIP and MEP; however, significant pre-to-post changes were observed in the control group but not in the RT group. A significant Group × Time interaction was also observed for sit-to-stand performance, with improvement in the control group but not in the RT group. No significant Group × Time interactions were observed for handgrip strength or oxygen saturation. Significant Group × Time interactions were observed for plasma IL-6, IL-10, and Klotho (all p < 0.001), as well as exhaled breath condensate IL-6 (p = 0.006) and Klotho (p = 0.003). In contrast, no significant interactions were observed for plasma TNF-α, exhaled breath condensate IL-10, or exhaled breath condensate TNF-α. Twelve weeks of supervised RT were associated with differential changes in respiratory muscle strength, functional capacity, and selected systemic and airway biomarkers in older adults. Significant Group × Time interactions were observed for MIP, MEP, the 1-min sit-to-stand test, and selected inflammatory and aging-related biomarkers, but not for pulmonary function. These findings indicate that the effects of RT varied across outcomes, rather than demonstrating consistent improvement across all assessed measures. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT06682221.
SN - 2090-2204
SN - 2090-2212
ER -