title: Light-emitting diode therapy (LEDT) improves functional capacity in rats with heart failure.
abstract: The syndrome of heart failure (HF) promotes central and peripheral dysfunctions that result in functional capacity decrease, leading to fatigue, dyspnea, and exercise intolerance. The use of light-emitting diode therapy (LEDT) has shown good results reducing fatigue and exercise intolerance, when applied on skeletal muscles before or after exercises. Thereby, the aim of this study was to compare the effects of LEDT on functional capacity, aerobic power, and hemodynamic function in HF rats. Male Wistar rats (230-260 g) were randomly allocated into three experimental groups: Sham (n = 6), Control-HF (n = 4), and LEDT-HF (n = 6). The animals were subjected to an exercise performance test (ET) with gas analysis coupled in a metabolic chamber for rats performed two times (6 and 14 weeks after myocardial infarction). On the day after the baseline aerobic capacity test, the animals were submitted during 8 weeks to the phototherapy protocol, five times/week, 60 s of irradiation, 6 J delivered per muscle group. Statistical analysis was performed by one- and two-way ANOVAs with repeated measures and Student-Newman-Keuls post hoc tests (p ≤ 0.05). Comparing the percentage difference (Δ) between baseline and the final ET, there was no significant difference for the VO2max variable considering all groups. However, Sham and LEDT-HF groups showed higher relative values than the Control-HF group, respectively, for distance covered (27.7 and 32.5 %), time of exercise test (17.7 and 20.5 %), and speed (13.6 and 12.2 %). In conclusion, LEDT was able to increase the functional capacity evaluated by distance covered, time, and speed of exercise in rats with HF.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Physiology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.|Post-Graduation Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, UFCSPA, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lucas
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Capalonga
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Physiology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.|Post-Graduation Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, UFCSPA, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marlus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Karsten
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Physiology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.|Post-Graduation Program in Health Sciences, UFCSPA, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vítor Scotta
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Hentschke
authors.affiliation: Centro Universitário Franciscano, Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Douglas Dalcin
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Rossato
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Physiology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maurício Pinto
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Dornelles
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Physiology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.|Post-Graduation Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, UFCSPA, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Anelise
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sonza
authors.affiliation: Physics Institute of Sao Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vanderlei Salvador
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Bagnato
authors.affiliation: Physics Institute of Sao Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil.|Laboratory of Electrothermophototherapy, Department of Physical Therapy, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil.|Wellman Center for Photomedicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Cleber
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ferraresi
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Electrothermophototherapy, Department of Physical Therapy, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Nivaldo Antonio
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Parizotto
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Physiology, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. pdallago@ufcspa.edu.br.|Post-Graduation Program in Rehabilitation Sciences, UFCSPA, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. pdallago@ufcspa.edu.br.|Post-Graduation Program in Health Sciences, UFCSPA, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. pdallago@ufcspa.edu.br.|Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Reabilitação (PPG-CR), Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre (UFCSPA), Rua Sarmento Leite, 245, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, 90050-170, Brazil. pdallago@ufcspa.edu.br.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dal Lago
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005080:Exercise Test; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000528:radiation effects*; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D028022:Low-Level Light Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000528:radiation effects*; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
keywords: Exercise test; Hemodynamic function; Maximal oxygen uptake; Phototherapy