Effects of Different Sedentary Interruption Interventions on Vascular Function in Adults: A Network Meta-Analysis

Background: Interrupting sedentary behavior through intermittent activity may prevent or ameliorate vascular dysfunction. This study aimed to compare and rank the effectiveness of different sedentary interruption interventions on vascular function in adults using a network meta-analysis (NMA). Methods: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, and Web of Science databases to identify the randomized controlled trials that investigated the impact of sedentary interruption interventions on adult vascular function. The retrieval period was from inception to October 2024. Paired analyses and NMAs were conducted using the random-effects model. Results: This research included 27 studies, which involved five sedentary intervention methods and covered a total of 483 participants. Sedentary interruption interventions can effectively improve the levels of blood flow (mean difference [MD] = 0.33, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.18, 0.48), mean arterial shear rate (MD = 0.32, 95% CI: 0.15 0.49), flow-mediated dilation (FMD)% (MD = 0.43, 95% CI: 0.26, 0.59), and carotid-to-ankle pulse-wave velocity (PWV; MD = -1.12, 95% CI: -1.50, -0.73). The surface under the cumulative ranking curve revealed that aerobic activities were the most effective interventions in improving mean arterial pressure, blood flow, and mean arterial shear rate. Lower-extremity activities could most effectively improve FMD%, carotid-to-ankle PWV, and carotid-to-femoral PWV, and standing achieved good results in improving carotid-to-radial PWV. Conclusion: Interventions to interrupt sedentary behavior effectively enhance vascular health in sedentary populations. Aerobic activities and lower-extremity activities have demonstrated relatively strong advantages in improving vascular function.