Exercise Might be OK Heart Failure Patients

(November 13, 2008) - Exercise can be good for everyone, even heart failure patients. (Read about "Getting Started on Fitness" "Congestive Heart Failure") Heart failure patients who regularly exercise fare better and feel better about their lives than do similar patients who do not work out on a regular basis, say researchers.

The findings, reported at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2008, go a long way toward addressing concerns about the value of exercise for the nation's five million patients with heart failure. Another study, presented at the same conference, showed that exercise does not significantly reduce hospitalization or death, but did not increase risk of other problems.

"Past studies have sent mixed signals about the merit of exercise for patients with heart failure. The HF-ACTION study shows that exercise is not only safe for patients, but also helps to improve the quality of their lives, overall," says Kathryn Flynn, PhD, lead author of the study.

HF-ACTION is the largest clinical trial to date examining the value of exercise in the treatment of heart failure. Investigators enrolled 2331 patients with moderate to severe heart failure at 82 sites throughout the U.S., Canada and France.

Researchers randomized participants to receive either standard care or standard care plus an exercise program. The exercise regimen consisted of three months of supervised aerobic training on a bicycle or treadmill, followed by instruction for continued home-based training. Researchers set the exercise goal at five, 40-minute workouts, or 200 minutes of exercise per week. Participants reached about 60 percent of that goal at one year.

Subjects were evaluated on quality of life issues at three-month intervals for the first 12 months, and annually thereafter. The average time of follow-up was two and one-half years.

Those in the exercise group consistently showed improvement in quality of life. Quality of life issues included working, walking (Read about "Walking for Health"), being able to dress, bathe, and getting out to visit family and friends.

"This study has important implications for the 5 million Americans who have heart failure," noted Elizabeth G. Nabel, MD, NHLBI director. "As the number of people affected by heart failure is expected to rise with the aging U.S. population, it is promising to know that regular aerobic activity can not only help patients extend their lives, but exercise can also positively impact their everyday activities and outlook."