Exercise training to reduce sympathetic nerve activity in heart failure patients. A systematic review and meta-analysis.
María Javiera Saavedra, Fernando Romero, Jorge Roa and 1 others
PMID 28733092WHAT IT FOUND
Four months of aerobic cycle training lowered muscle sympathetic nerve activity compared with a control condition of medication and daily-life follow-up in adults with chronic heart failure across five randomized trials.
This measure is not a commonly used clinical outcome.
Key findings
01Across five randomized trials, four months of aerobic cycle training reduced sympathetic nerve activity in adults with chronic heart failure.
02The exercise group had significantly fewer sympathetic bursts per minute and per 100 heartbeats than the no-exercise control group.
03The review measured only sympathetic nerve activity, and the paper says this is not a commonly used clinical outcome.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The included trials had small sample sizes, which reduces statistical power. There was high heterogeneity and inconsistency between studies, which lowered the quality of evidence. One study had a high risk of detection bias and one had a high risk of selection bias. The review measured only sympathetic nerve activity, and the paper says this is not a commonly used clinical outcome. It included only aerobic training, so the result cannot be applied to strength training or high-intensity interval training.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The work was funded by the School of Kinesiology at San Sebastian University and formed part of a master's thesis.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that exercise training improves patient outcomes in heart failure. The review measured sympathetic nerve activity, and the paper says this is not a commonly used clinical outcome.