Endurance Training: Transforming Lives of Heart Failure Patients

Can strength and endurance training be beneficial for patients with a certain form of heart failure? A research team from Greifswald investigated this question together with seven other research centers in Germany.

In the largest study of its kind to date, the effect of one year of training on the health of patients was examined. The research team was able to prove that those affected benefited from better performance and resilience in everyday life. The results have now been published in the journal Nature Medicine.

HFpEF: A Unique Form of Heart Failure

Over 300 patients with a certain form of heart failure were included in the study. They suffer from heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, or HFpEF for short. “This means that the heart of those affected pumps normally, but is too stiff to fill properly,” explains Prof. Marcus Dörr, Greifswald site spokesman for the German Center for Cardiovascular Research. As a result, those affected have the same symptoms and prognoses as patients who have poor pumping function.

The Significance of Comparing Training and Conventional Medical Care

The study participants were randomly divided into two groups: one group used conventional medical care, the other group did endurance and strength training three times a week for a year. “It was a big challenge for our training group to keep going for a whole year,” says Dörr, looking back. Previous studies mostly lasted for just six to eight weeks. At the same time, the senior physician emphasizes how important it is to investigate this particular form of heart failure: “For people with HFpEF, there has only recently been evidence-based drug therapy, while there is already a wide range of treatment options for other types of heart failure.”

The effects of the combined training of endurance and strength exercises were measured using various parameters – such as the number of hospital stays due to heart failure, overall mortality, heart function and symptoms, or maximum oxygen uptake.
Although not all parameters showed differences between the two groups, “we were able to demonstrate that structured training can significantly improve the objectively measurable resilience and also the symptoms in those affected,” says Dörr. This plays a particularly important role in patient care, “because our study is proof that adapted physical training should be an integral part of the therapy of patients with this special form of heart failure.” The cross-site research team has now published its study results in the journal Nature Medicine.

A Cautious Way Forward

“Especially in our region, where risk factors such as obesity or high blood pressure are becoming increasingly important, research into cardiovascular diseases is particularly important,” emphasizes Prof. Karlhans Endlich, Scientific Director of the University Medicine Greifswald. The study shows how closely theory and practice are linked, “because these results have a direct influence on the care of our patients here locally.”

Scientific Contacts
Prof. Dr. med. Marcus Dörr
Phone Number: +49 3834-86-80510
Email ID: marcus.doerr@med.uni-greifswald.de
Website address: http://www.medizin.uni-greifswald.de

Original Publication
Frank Edelmann, Rolf Wachter, André Duvinage, Stephan Mueller, Isabel Fegers-Wustrow, Silja Schwarz, Jeffrey W. Christle, Elisabeth Pieske-Kraigher, Melchior Seyfarth, Markus Knapp, Marcus Dörr, Kathleen Nolte, Hans-Dirk Düngen, Christoph Herrmann-Lingen, Katrin Esefeld, Andreas Hagendorff, Mark J. Haykowsky, Gerd Hasenfuss, Volker Holzendorf, Christiane Prettin, Meinhard Mende, Burkert Pieske & Martin Halle
Journal: Nature Medicine
Article Title: Combined endurance and resistance exercise training in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: a randomized controlled trial
Article Publication Date: 02 January 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03342-7

Media Contact
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Source: (IDW)