BOSTON — Regular, moderate exercise can help control ventricular rate in patients with permanent atrial fibrillation, according to a study presented as a poster at the annual meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society.
“Patients with atrial fibrillation [AF] find it difficult to exercise, so this is a new idea,” Dr. Jurgita Plisiene, a cardiologist at University Hospital in Aachen, Germany, said in an interview.
Ventricular rate increases during exercise, making it difficult for patients to improve their exercise capacity. But 4 months of twice-weekly exercise, involving walking or jogging for 60 minutes, increased exercise capacity in her 10 subjects with permanent AF, while at the same time regulating their ventricular rate.
The patients had a mean age of 59 years and a mean 10 years' duration of permanent AF. They undertook individualized, physician-directed exercise programs tailored to their physical capacity. Physical exercise tests and Holter ECG recordings were performed at baseline and after 4 months.
The study found that the exercise program decreased the subjects' mean ventricular rate by 12%. The mean rate at rest decreased from 87 to 78 beats per minute, and at almost every exercise level a significant ventricular rate decrease was observed.
In addition, overall exercise capacity, as estimated by repeated lactate measurements and by questionnaires, also significantly improved.