The influence of exercise training on the ventilatory threshold of patients with coronary heart disease

• Published in: The American heart journal Vol. 109; no. 3; pp. 458 - 463
• Main Authors: Sullivan, Michael, Ahnve, Staffan, Froelicher, Victor F., Meyers, Jon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Mosby, Inc 01.03.1985; Elsevier
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Cardiology. Vascular system; Coronary Disease - blood; Coronary Disease - physiopathology; Coronary heart disease; Electrocardiography; Heart; Heart Rate; Humans; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Oxygen Consumption; Physical Endurance; Physical Exertion; Pulmonary Gas Exchange; Random Allocation; Space life sciences; Time Factors; Human; Physical training; Lung function; Lung; Various treatments; Cardiovascular disease; Gas exchange; Pulmonary ventilation; Coronary heart disease
• ISSN: 0002-8703; 1097-6744
• DOI: 10.1016/0002-8703(85)90548-4

Out of 156 patients with stable coronary heart disease randomized to either an exercise intervention group or a control group, 41 had complete gas analysis data. Continuous gas exchange data, including the ventilatory threshold, and selected heart rates were determined initially and at 1 year. The mean attendance for the exercise group was 2.2 ± 0.7 days a week at an intensity of 60 ± 9% of estimated peak oxygen uptake for 1 year of the study. Statistically significant differences ( p < 0.05) were observed between the exercise group (n = 19) and the control group (n = 22) for peak oxygen uptake (L/min), total treadmill time, and supine rest and submaximal heart rates after 1 year. The most remarkable change was a 16% increase in treadmill time. There was no difference between groups for the ventilatory threshold expressed either as an absolute oxygen uptake or as a percentage of peak oxygen uptake at 1 year. However, there was a significant correlation ( r = 0.45; p < 0.05) between the absolute change in peak oxygen uptake and the absolute change in the ventilatory threshold. These results indicate that a moderate exercise program is inadequate to alter the ventilatory threshold in patients with coronary heart disease and that changes in ventilatory threshold do not explain the increase in treadmill time that usually occurs.