Managing Chronic Heart Failure/ partial reprint from U.S. Medicine
Managing Chronic Heart Failure
Chronic heart failure (CHF) results in symptoms such as fatigue and decreased ability to exercise that often leads to an increasingly sedentary lifestyle and a deterioration of muscle function. Until recently, the prescription for patients with CHF was rest and minimization of physical exertion. In another NRI study, Eileen Collins, PhD, RN, at the Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital, investigated whether veterans with moderate to severe CHF, who completed a 12-week individualized program of cardiopulmonary training, would have better quality of life and aerobic fitness. Findings from this study indicate that a moderately high intensity exercise training program for patients with moderate to severe heart failure significantly improved perceptions of physical function. Further, oxygen intake in the exercise group was significantly better, indicating a better level of physical fitness.