Effects of Exercise Training on Endothelial Function, Inflammation, Arterial Stiffness and Autonomic Function in CAD

Summary

The main purposes of this study is to analyze, in a randomized controlled trial, the effects of an exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation program (i) on biomarkers of endothelial function, (ii) on biomarkers of inflammation, (iii) on autonomic function, and (iv) on arterial stiffness in coronary artery disease patients (CAD). Additionally, the investigators aim to analyze the (v) contribution of age and the changes in traditional risk factors to the modification of the endothelial dysfunction and inflammation, and (vi) the contribution of the changes in inflammatory and endothelial function biomarkers to the modification of autonomic function and arterial stiffness.

The investigators hypothesize that exercise training will improve the autonomic function, arterial stiffness and mitigate the endothelial dysfunction and inflammation in CAD patients even in the absence of significant changes in traditional risk factors. Thus, the investigators expect with the present study to promote, develop and expand the knowledge in this field by assessing the impact of exercise on a pool of markers that provide a wide picture of the pathophysiological processes underlying CAD.

Conditions

• Coronary Artery Disease

Interventions

OTHER

Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation program

The intervention consists of usual medical care (i.e., medicine prescription and counseling of lifestyle modifications) and an supervised outpatient aerobic exercise training, which will be performed 3 days per week for 8 weeks. Each exercise session include 10 min of warm up, 35 min of aerobic exercise (i.e., cycloergometer or treadmill) and 10 min of cool down. The exercise intensity will be calculated as 65- 75% of maximal heart rate achieved in the treadmill exercise testing. Individualized exercise prescription will be periodically adjusted. A perceived exertion scale will be used as an adjunctive intensity modulator. In addition, each patient will be encouraged to daily exercise outside the formal exercise program.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Centro Hospitalar de Vila Nova de Gaia/Espinho

  collaborator OTHER

• Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Portugal

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Universidade do Porto

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Jose Oliveira, PhD · Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Portugal

• Fernando Ribeiro, PhD · Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Portugal

• Nórton L Oliveira, MSc · Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Portugal

• Madalena Teixeira, MD · Centro Hospitalar de Vila Nova de Gaia/Espinho

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2011-05-31

Primary Completion

2012-11-30

Completion

2012-11-30

Countries

• Portugal

Study Locations