Cardiovascular and Aortic Wave Reflection Responses to Evening Binge Alcohol Consumption

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-1-2025

Abstract

Evening binge alcohol consumption contributes to sleep disruption and autonomic dysregulation that persists into the following morning. However, its impact on morning-after arterial stiffness and aortic wave reflection remains unknown. Using a randomized, crossover, fluid-controlled design, we hypothesized that heart rate (HR), carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV), aortic augmentation index (AIx), and aortic pulsatile load (APL) would be increased acutely after binge drinking at night (study 1) and the morning-after binge drinking (study 2). Participants (n=33, 18 females, 15 males, age 25±1 years, BMI: 27±1 kg/m) completed binge alcohol (4-5 drink equivalent) and fluid control protocols. Study 1 examined cardiovascular responses during resting baseline and within 30 minutes of evening alcohol consumption, while study 2 examined cardiovascular responses within 15 minutes of waking the morning-after binge alcohol or fluid control. In Study 1, HR and APL increased after the final dose of alcohol (p<0.001) but decreased with fluid control. In Study 2, morning HR (63±2 vs. 57±1 beats/min, p<0.001), APL (2060±82 vs. 1857±66 a.u., p=0.012) and AIx normalized to 75 beats per minute (AIx@75) (6.5±2.4 vs. 2.9±2.5%, p=0.042) were increased, while unadjusted AIx was unchanged, after binge alcohol compared to fluid control. cfPWV was not altered by binge alcohol acutely (study 1) or the morning-after (study 2). Our results indicate evening binge alcohol consumption elicited acute increases of HR and APL and morning-after increases HR, APL, and AIx@75. These findings highlight physiological mechanisms that might contribute to well-documented associations between binge alcohol consumption and heightened cardiovascular risk.

Publication Title

American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology

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