Baduanjin for ischemic heart failure with mildly reduced/preserved ejection fraction (BEAR Trial): A randomized controlled trial
Author: Jingen Li1,2,3, Meili Yu4, Yanhui Wang4, Siming Li1, Siwei Li5, Xue Feng6, Ruijie Li4, Keji Chen1, Hao Xu1
Affiliation:
1 National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine Cardiology, Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
2 Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
3 Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
4 Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Beijing First Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Beijing, China.
5 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Beijing Hepingli Hospital, Beijing, China.
6 Cardiac Rehabilitation Center, Fuwai Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Conference/Journal: J Evid Based Med
Date published: 2024 Jul 6
Other:
Special Notes: doi: 10.1111/jebm.12631. , Word Count: 254
Aim:
While Baduanjin, a traditional Chinese mind-body exercise, has shown potential health benefits, its efficacy in improving outcomes for heart failure patients with mildly reduced or preserved ejection fraction (HFmrEF/HFpEF) has not been well documented. We aimed to investigate the adjunctive impact of Baduanjin on exercise capacity and quality of life for HFmrEF/HFpEF.
Methods:
Patients with HFmrEF/HFpEF were enrolled in this multicenter randomized clinical trial. All participants were randomized to conventional cardiac rehabilitation with or without an additional 12-week Baduanjin exercise. The primary endpoint was the distance covered in a 6-min walk test (6MWD), while key secondary outcomes included quality of life measured by the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHFQ) and cardiopulmonary function including anaerobic threshold (VO2 AT).
Results:
A total of 120 patients were enrolled, and 109 completed all session and tests. The mean age of the 120 patients was 60.5 years (SD, 9.21 years), and 23 (19.2%) were women. The Baduanjin group exhibited a 6.14% improvement in 6MWD compared to a 1.32% improvement in the control group (median improvement, 25.0 vs. 5.0 m; p < 0.001) at 12th week. The VO2 AT increased by 25.87% in the Baduanjin group versus 3.94% in the control group (p < 0.001). Quality of life also significantly improved in the Baduanjin group as indicated by MLHFQ score changes (-16.8% vs. -3.99%; p < 0.001).
Conclusions:
Adding Baduanjin to exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation for patients with ischemic HFmrEF or HFpEF are generally safe and could provide significant improvements in exercise capacity and quality of life.
Keywords: Baduanjin; cardiac rehabilitation; clinical trial; heart failure; traditional Chinese exercise.
PMID: 38970325 DOI: 10.1111/jebm.12631
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