Key result
HFpEF exhibits ~29% lower exercising muscle blood flow vs hypertensive controls despite similar central hemodynamics.
Why the study?
Does intermittent handgrip exercise reveal impaired peripheral exercising muscle blood flow in patients with HFpEF compared to hypertensive controls?
Cross-Sectional (n=50)
No
Does intermittent handgrip exercise reveal impaired peripheral exercising muscle blood flow in patients with HFpEF compared to hypertensive controls?
Absolute Event Rate: 283% vs 399%
p-value: p=<0.05
Suggests peripheral limitation to exercise capacity in HFpEF; hypothesis-generating and requires confirmation in larger studies.
The current study identified, for the first time, an attenuation in exercising muscle blood flow during handgrip exercise in individuals with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) compared with overweight individuals with hypertension, two of the most common comorbidities associated with HFpEF. These decrements in exercise hyperemia cannot be attributed to disease-related changes in central hemodynamics or endothelial function, providing additional evidence for disease-related vascular dysregulation, which may be a predominant contributor to exercise intolerance in individuals with HFpEF.
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Ratchford et al. (2020) conducted a cross-sectional in Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) (n=50). Rhythmic handgrip exercise vs. Hypertensive controls was evaluated on Forearm blood flow at 45% maximal voluntary contraction (ml/min) (p=<0.05). Rhythmic handgrip exercise resulted in a 20-40% attenuation in exercising muscle blood flow in individuals with HFpEF compared with hypertensive controls, despite similar central hemodynamics.
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