Publication details

Electrical stimulation of skeletal muscles: An alternative to aerobic exercise training in patients with chronic heart failure?

Authors

DOBŠÁK Petr NOVÁKOVÁ Marie FIŠER Bohumil SIEGELOVÁ Jarmila BALCÁRKOVÁ Pavla ŠPINAROVÁ Lenka VÍTOVEC Jiří MINAMI Naoyoshi NAGASAKA Makoto KOHZUKI Masahiro YAMBE Tomoyuki IMACHI Kou NITTA Shin-ichi EICHER Jean-Christophe WOLF Jean-Eric

Year of publication 2006
Type Article in Periodical
Magazine / Source International Heart Journal
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Medicine

Citation
Field Cardiovascular diseases incl. cardiosurgery
Keywords Heart failure;rehabilitation;exercise;functional capacity;electrical stimulation;strength muscle;home-based training
Description The aim of this study was to investigate whether electrical stimulation of skeletal muscles could represent a rehabilitation alternative for patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). Thirty patients with CHF and NYHA class II-III were randomly assigned to a rehabilitation program using either electrical stimulation of skeletal muscles or bicycle training. Patients in the first group (n = 15) had 8 weeks of home-based low-frequency electrical stimulation (LFES) applied simultaneously to the quadriceps and calf muscles of both legs (1 h/day for 7 days/week); patients in the second group (n = 15) underwent 8 weeks of 40 minute aerobic exercise (3 times a week). After the 8-week period significant increases in several functional parameters were observed in both groups: maximal VO2 uptake (LFES group: from 17.5+/-4.4 mL/kg/min to 18.3+/-4.2 mL/kg/min, P 0.05; bicycle group: from 18.1+/-3.9 mL/kg/min to 19.3+/-4.1 mL/kg/min, P 0.01), maximal workload (LFES group: from 84.3+/-15.2 W to 95.9+/-9.8 W, P 0.05; bicycle group: from 91.2+/-13.4 W to 112.9+/-10.8 W, P 0.01), distance walked in 6 minutes (LFES group: from 398+/-105 m to 435+/-112 m, P 0.05; bicycle group: from 425+/-118 m to 483+/-120 m, P 0.03), and exercise duration (LFES group: from 488+/-45 seconds to 568+/-120 seconds, P 0.05; bicycle group: from 510+/-90 seconds to 611+/-112 seconds, P 0.03). These results demonstrate that an improvement of exercise capacities can be achieved either by classical exercise training or by home-based electrical stimulation. LFES should be considered as a valuable alternative to classical exercise training in patients with CHF.
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