Table 3.
Summary of randomized controlled trials investigating the effect of exercise in heart transplant recipients
| Study | n, mean age (yr) | Mean time after HTx | Intervention | Mean change in VO2peak (mL/kg per minute) within groups | Mean change in VO2peak (mL/kg per minute) between groups |
| Kobashigawa et al[3] | 27, 52 | 1 mo | 6 mo partly supervised rehabilitation program vs controls CG | Ex: 9.2 → 13.6 | 2.5 |
| Walking: cycling and upper and lower limb exercises for 30 min × 1-3/wk | Con: 10.4 → 12.3 | ||||
| Tegtbur et al[26] | 32, 55 | 5 yr | 1 yr home-based exercise program vs controls | Ex: 18.6 → 20.0 | 1.3 |
| Cycling every other day for 1 yr at 80%-90% of maximum HR | Con: 18.9 → 19.0 | ||||
| Bernardi et al[6] | 24, 52 | 6 mo | 6 mo home training vs controls | Ex: 14.9 → 19.6 | 3.4 |
| Cycling at 60%-70% of VO2peak 30 min × 5/wk × 6 mo | Con: 14.3 → 15.6 | ||||
| Karapolat et al[5] | 28, 42 | 1.5 yr | 8 wk supervised hospital training vs home-based training | ||
| 1.5 h of multiple exercises: including aerobic exercise for 30 min at 60%-70% of VO2peak × 3/wk | Ex: 16.7 → 19.5 | 3.4 | |||
| The controls received written guidelines on exercises and a walking program | Con: 20.1 → 19.5 | ||||
| Wu et al[27] | 37, 56 | 2 yr | 8 wk home training vs controls | ||
| Strength training and aerobic exercise at 60%-70% of VO2peak: 35-40 min × 3/wk | Ex: 12.1 → 13.2 | 1.6 | |||
| Con: 13.7 → 13.2 | |||||
| Haykowsky et al[25] | 43, 59 | 5 yr | 12 wk aerobic/strength training vs controls | ||
| First 8 wk: continuous aerobic exercise at 60%-80% of VO2peak: 30-45 min × 2/wk | |||||
| Continuous aerobic training at 80% of VO2peak, 45 min × 2/wk and bicycle interval training for 30 s at 90%-100% of VO2peak: followed by 60 s rest for 10-25 reps × 2/wk in the final 4 wk | Ex: 21.2 → 24.7 | 3.5 | |||
| Resistance training at 50% of 1RM: 10-15 reps × 1-2 sets × 4 exercises × 2/wk for 12 wk | Con: 18.2 → 18.2 | ||||
| Hermann et al[16] | 27, 50 | 7 yr | 8 wk high-intensity interval training vs controls | ||
| Interval blocks of 4 min/2 min/30 s: corresponding to 80%: 85% and 90% of VO2peak: respectively: and recovery periods of ½ min: and finally staircase running at 80% of VO2peak: followed by recovery walking 60 min × 3/wk | Ex: 23.9 → 28.3 | 5.6 | |||
| Con: 24.6 → 23.4 | |||||
| Nytrøen et al[18] | 48, 51 | 4 yr | 1 yr high-intensity interval training vs controls | ||
| 4 interval blocks of 4 min each performed at 91% of peak HR: with 3 min active recovery periods between each block | Ex: 27.7 → 30.9 | 3.6 | |||
| 3 periods of 8 wk distributed throughout 1 yr with exercise 3/wk for a total of 72 exercise sessions | Con: 28.5 → 28.0 |
HTx: Heart transplant; NT: No training; Ex: Exercise group; Con: Control group; 1RM: 1 repetition maximum; HR: Heart rate.