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. 2022 Feb 18;11(4):1066.
doi: 10.3390/jcm11041066.

Association between Right Ventricular Function and Exercise Capacity in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure

Kazumasa Ohara  1 , Teruhiko Imamura  2 , Hiroyuki Ihori  1 , Kenichi Chatani  1 , Makoto Nonomura  1 , Tomoki Kameyama  1 , Hiroshi Inoue  1
Affiliations

Association between Right Ventricular Function and Exercise Capacity in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure

Kazumasa Ohara et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Background: The association between right ventricular function and exercise capacity in patients with chronic heart failure remains uncertain. Several studies very recently mentioned the association between right ventricular reserve and exercise capacity, whereas the implication of tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) remains uninvestigated. We aimed to assess the impact of TAPSE on exercise capacity in cardiac rehabilitation candidates.

Methods: Data from patients with chronic heart failure who received cardiopulmonary exercise tests and transthoracic echocardiography prior to cardiac rehabilitation were retrospectively collected, and their association was investigated.

Results: A total of 169 patients with chronic heart failure (70.3 ± 11.7 years old, 74.6% men) were included. Tertiled tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion significantly stratified anaerobic threshold (10.2 ± 2.2, 11.4 ± 2.2, and 12.2 ± 2.8 mm; p < 0.01) and peak oxygen consumption (15.9 ± 4.5, 18.3 ± 5.3, and 19.8 ± 5.6 mm; p < 0.01). In the multivariate logistic regression analyses, TAPSE was an independent factor associated with anaerobic threshold and peak oxygen consumption (p < 0.05 for both).

Conclusions: Right ventricular impairment was associated with reduced exercise capacity in patients with chronic heart failure. Such knowledge would be useful to estimate patients' exercise capacity and prescribe cardiac rehabilitation. Its longitudinal association and clinical implication need further studies.

Keywords: TAPSE; peak oxygen consumption; right ventricular failure.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distributions of AT (A) and PVO2 (B).
Figure 1
Figure 1
Distributions of AT (A) and PVO2 (B).
Figure 2
Figure 2
AT (A) and PVO2 (B) levels stratified by the tertiled TAPSE. * p < 0.05 compared with the lowest title by post-hoc Tukey’s test.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Changes in AT (A) and PVO2 (B) following the 5-month cardiac rehabilitation in the normal and abnormal TAPSE groups. * p < 0.05 compared to baseline. Open bars, baseline; solid bars, 5-month follow-up.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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