title: Long-Term Exercise Training in Patients With Advanced Chronic Heart Failure: SUSTAINED BENEFITS ON LEFT VENTRICULAR PERFORMANCE AND EXERCISE CAPACITY.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In moderately impaired, stable chronic heart failure (CHF) patients, exercise training (ET) enhances exercise capacity. In contrast, the therapeutic benefits of regular ET in patients with advanced CHF, especially in the long-term, are limited or conflicting. Therefore, the aim of the present investigation was to elucidate whether ET performed over 12 months would improve left ventricular performance and exercise capacity in patients with advanced CHF.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-seven patients with CHF and New York Heart Association (NYHA) class IIIb were randomized to a sedentary lifestyle or daily ET on a cycle ergometer (in-hospital and home-based at 50%-60% of maximal exercise capacity). Cardiopulmonary exercise testing and echocardiography were performed at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Exercise training resulted in continuous decreases in left ventricular end-diastolic diameter at 3, 6, and 12 months versus baseline (all P < .05). This was accompanied by a significant increase in resting left ventricular ejection fraction from 24.1% ± 1.2% at baseline to 38.4% ± 2.0% at 12-month followup (P < .05). Moreover, ET patients increased exercise capacity measured by maximal oxygen uptake (Equation is included in full-text article.)O2max at 3, 6, and 12 months compared with baseline: 15.3 ± 0.8 mL/min/kg, 17.8 ± 0.8 mL/min/kg, 19.0 ± 0.7 mL/min/kg, and 19.5 ± 0.9 mL/min/kg, respectively (all P < .05 vs baseline). This was associated with a reduced NYHA classification.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Exercise training over 12 months resulted in an improvement in exercise capacity and reversing of left ventricular remodeling in patients with advanced CHF (NYHA IIIb). These beneficial adaptations continued to improve up to 6 months and remained stable thereafter.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine/Cardiology (Drs Höllriegel, Winzer, Linke, Adams, Mangner, Sandri, Bowen, Schuler, and Erbs), University of Leipzig-Heart Center, Leipzig, Germany; and Heart Center Bremen (Dr Hambrecht), Klinikum Links der Weser, Bremen, Germany.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Höllriegel
authors.forename: Ephraim B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Winzer
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Linke
authors.forename: Volker
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Adams
authors.forename: Norman
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mangner
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sandri
authors.forename: T Scott
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Bowen
authors.forename: Rainer
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hambrecht
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schuler
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Erbs
mesh_terms: D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000379:methods; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D017079:Exercise Tolerance; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left; D020257:Ventricular Remodeling