Supervised Exercise Improves HF Outcomes

Participation in a supervised exercise program is associated with improved outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF), according to a recent study.

Findings from the study were presented by Kirsten Roberts at the Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) 21st Annual Scientific Meeting, which took place from September 16 to 19, 2017, in Dallas, Texas.
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Strategies are needed for the improvement of outcomes associated with HF. Although supervised exercise programs are a class A recommendation for many cardiac conditions and are reimbursable by Medicare and most insurance carriers, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services deny or limit HF as a reimbursable diagnosis for such programs due to lack of evidence of their effects in this patient population.

For their study, Roberts and colleagues assessed 70 patients with stable New York Heart Association class II to IV diastolic or systolic HF who participated in an outpatient phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation program.

Patients completed the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ) to assess quality of life and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) to assess level of depression. The 6-Minute Walk Distance (6MWD) test was used to determine functional level. Medical records were used to analyze readmission data.

Results indicated that, following participation in the program, PHQ-9 scores had dropped, and KCCQ scores had improved in the subsets of physical limitation, system frequency, system burden, total system, self-efficacy, quality of life, social limitation, overall summary, and clinical summary. However, KCCQ scores for system stability had not improved.

The researchers noted that an increase in 6MWD was associated with improved functional status. Additionally, readmission rates had improved, admission encounters had decreased, and hospital lengths of stay had decreased.

“Participation in a supervised exercise program resulted in clinically and statistically significant positive changes in depression scores, quality of life scores, functional status, and rates of readmission,” the researchers concluded.

—Christina Vogt

Reference:

Roberts K. Effects of supervised exercise on select outcomes for patients with heart failure. J Cardiac Failure. 2017;23(8):S8-S9.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cardfail.2017.07.018.