Exercise Effects on Atrial Fibrillation

European University Miguel de Cervantes

Status: Not yet enrolling

Conditions: Atrial Fibrillation

Treatments: Other: Experimental HIFT; Other: Experimental HIIT

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06607510

PI-DOC004-AF

Details and patient eligibility

About

Atrial fibrillation (AF) significantly affects quality of life and increases the demand for medical care of those affected. It is very important to identify triggering factors, such as oxidative stress or N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), as well as to identify potential biomarkers through plasma analysis. At the same time, it is essential to establish adequate training and rehabilitation programs, which would result in a decrease in hospitalizations and the health care costs associated with the pathology. Current cardiac rehabilitation programs based on physical exercise, especially moderate intensity continuous training (MICT), have demonstrated effectiveness. MICT improves cardiorespiratory fitness and quality of life in patients with AF. However, high-intensity intervallic training (HIIT) has shown superior benefits in these variables.

Although HIIT traditionally has an aerobic focus, a variant called high-intensity functional training (HIFT) is suggested that incorporates muscle strengthening exercises recommended in the guidelines for AF management. This innovative modality seeks to achieve cardiovascular and neuromuscular adaptations simultaneously, with a high transfer to daily activities. Despite its potential, the effects at the functional, molecular and clinical levels in patients with AF are unknown. The purpose of the study is to determine the benefits of HIFT on molecular, functional and clinical variables in patients with AF, and to compare these benefits with those achieved with HIIT and the usual care and recommendations in current clinical practice.

Enrollment: 57 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 80 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Paroxysmal or persistent atrial fibrillation.
• Age between 18 and 80 years.
• Sedentary lifestyle.
• Signed informed consent.

Exclusion criteria

• Permanent atrial fibrillation.
• Moderate to severe left ventricular dysfunction.
• Moderate to severe left valvulopathy.
• Severe pulmonary hypertension.
• Ischemic heart disease with incomplete revascularization.
• Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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57 participants in 3 patient groups

Experimental HIIT.

Experimental group

Description:

Subjects belonging to this group perform a 12-week supervised exercise. Treadmill walking exercise. Participants must complete four four-minute blocks at an intensity of 85-95% of peak heart rate.

Treatment:

Other: Experimental HIIT

Experimental HIFT.

Experimental group

Description:

Subjects belonging to this group perform a 12-week supervised exercise. Four blocks of 4 minutes each of the highest number of repetitions/rounds possible (AMRAP) at an intensity of 85-95% of peak heart rate.

Treatment:

Other: Experimental HIFT

No intervention: Control.

No Intervention group

Description:

These patients do not receive training sessions.