As a result of climate change, heat waves are more frequent and of longer duration. These heat waves are associated with a higher risk of hospitalization and mortality in vulnerable populations such as people with cardiovascular disease or cardiovascular risk factors. It has been hypothesized that this observation may be explained by the cardiovascular demands imposed by heat exposure.~Heat exposure requires increased cardiac work that may place individuals with cardiovascular disease at risk of ischemic events if the metabolic demand is not compensated by adequate blood supply. However, the extent to which cardiac work increases during heat exposure remains unknown. The aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that heat exposure increases myocardial blood flow and that this increase is affected by age and coronary artery disease.
The purpose of this study is to determine the increase in myocardial blood flow during heat exposure and how this response is affected by age and coronary artery disease.