According to a recent report from the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology, exercise therapy could be a safe and effective way to improve the quality of life for people with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, also known as HFpEF.
Heart failure happens when the heart is unable to pump enough blood to the body, either because the muscle becomes stiff or loses its pumping strength.
More than half of all people with heart failure have HFpEF, which can cause debilitating fatigue, difficulty breathing upon exertion, frequent hospitalizations, and even death.
This is a common type of heart failure that affects millions of people in the United States, especially women.
The prevalence of HFpEF has been increasing due to aging and the growing prevalence of risk factors such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
Improved management of this large population of patients represents an urgent unmet need.
Supervised exercise therapy can relieve symptoms of HFpEF by improving the heart’s pumping ability, decreasing blood vessel stiffness, and improving the function and energy capacity of skeletal muscle.
Exercise capacity is a crucial patient outcome, and research has found that guided exercise therapy is actually more effective at improving quality of life for people with HFpEF than most medications.
Currently, Medicare only covers cardiac rehabilitation for people with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, even though the AHA and ACC recommend supervised exercise training for people with both types of heart failure.
The committee reviewed research on different kinds of exercise therapy, including walking, stationary cycling, high-intensity interval training, strength training, and dancing.
The team found evidence that supervised exercise therapy could increase peak oxygen uptake in people with HFpEF by about 12%-14%, which is considered clinically meaningful.
Such therapy also could increase total exercise time by about 21%, double what’s considered clinically meaningful, and improve quality of life scores on a widely used questionnaire for people with heart failure.
Despite limitations in the research, the authors are confident the review supports the use of supervised exercise therapy.
However, improvements are needed in referring patients to programs, and better strategies are needed to improve long-term adherence to the training.
Different kinds of exercise therapy can be used for people with HFpEF, including walking, stationary cycling, high-intensity interval training, strength training, and dancing.
Supervised exercise programs typically take place three times a week and can last from one to eight months.
However, it’s important to note that improvements are needed in referring patients to programs, and better strategies are needed to improve long-term adherence to the training.
Hybrid programs combining supervised and home-based training may also be beneficial, and implementation efforts will need to include coverage by Medicare and other insurers.
Overall, exercise therapy can be a safe and effective way to improve the quality of life for people with HFpEF.
Some recommended types of exercise for people with heart failure include:
Aerobic exercise: This can include activities like walking, cycling, or swimming. Aerobic exercise can help improve your cardiovascular health, increase your endurance, and improve your ability to perform daily activities.
Resistance training: This can include activities like lifting weights or using resistance bands. Resistance training can help improve your muscle strength and endurance, which can make it easier to perform daily activities.
Flexibility exercises: This can include stretching exercises that can help improve your range of motion and prevent muscle stiffness and soreness.
It’s important to monitor your symptoms during exercise and to stop exercising if you experience chest pain, dizziness, or shortness of breath.
If you have heart failure, you should also avoid exercising in extreme temperatures, such as hot and humid weather, as this can increase your risk of dehydration and other complications.
Remember that exercise therapy can be a safe and effective way to improve the quality of life for people with heart failure, but it’s important to work with your healthcare provider to develop an exercise program that is safe and appropriate for your individual needs.
If you care about health, please read studies that early time-restricted eating could help improve blood pressure, and coconut sugar could help reduce blood pressure and artery stiffness.
For more information about health, please see recent studies about how drinking milk affects risks of heart disease and cancer, and results showing strawberries could help prevent Alzheimer’s disease.
The study was published in Circulation.
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