In patients with coronary artery disease, 12 weeks of HIIT with or without resistance training did not significantly alter cardiac, vascular, or neurotrophic blood biomarkers (all p>0.05).
RCT (n=105)
Single-blind
Does HIIT combined with resistance training or HIIT alone improve cardiac, vascular, and neurotrophic blood biomarkers compared to usual care in patients with coronary artery disease?
In patients with CAD, 12 weeks of HIIT with or without resistance training did not significantly alter cardiac, vascular, or neurotrophic biomarkers compared to usual care, though trends suggested potential NT-proBNP reduction with combined training.
p-value: p=>0.05
Abstract Introduction Patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) are at increased risk of cognitive decline. Exercise training is recommended to manage cardiovascular risk factors and may confer additional benefits for brain health (1). However, it remains unclear whether different exercise modalities elicit distinct changes in circulating cardiac, vascular and neurotrophic biomarkers that could underpin the benefits of exercise on heart-brain health. Aim This preliminary analysis from the HEART-BRAIN randomized controlled trial (RCT) compared the effects of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) combined with resistance training (HIIT+RT), HIIT alone, and usual care on cardiac, vascular and neurotrophic blood biomarkers in patients with CAD. Methods HEART-BRAIN was a single-blind RCT with 3 arms (2). The 12-week interventions consisted of 45-minute supervised exercise sessions, 3 days/week. Serum biomarkers were assessed at baseline and after 12 weeks, including: brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (β-CrossLaps), growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15), high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT), N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), placental growth factor (PIGF), procollagen type I N-terminal propeptide (TP1NP), and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFLT1). Biomarker z-scores were analysed with constrained linear mixed-effects models to test whether the changes over time were different between groups. Results A total of 105 participants (21% female, mean±standard deviation SD: 62±7 years old, body mass index: 29.1±3.9kg/m2) were included. At baseline, mean concentrations of most biomarkers were close to ranges reported in the general adult population, with BDNF 56,828±23,791pg/mL, β-CrossLaps 0.32±0.14 ng/mL, hs-cTnT 10.01±3.56 pg/mL, NT-proBNP 98±71 pg/mL, PlGF 16.19±3.51 pg/mL, TP1NP 52±21 ng/mL, and sFLT1 110±16 pg/mL. Notably, mean GDF-15 levels (1,261±455 pg/mL) were higher than reported in other studies (3), likely reflecting the presence of CAD. No statistically significant time × group interaction was observed for any biomarker (all p0.05). Yet, when looking at the effect sizes (see Figure), the HIIT+RT group showed a greater decrease in NT-proBNP z-scores compared to HIIT alone (HIIT+RT vs HIIT: -0.32 -0.72; 0.08) and compared to usual care (HIIT+RT vs. Usual Care: -0.26 -0.67; 0.14). Conclusion We did not observe statistically significant time × group effects on any biomarker, possibly due to healthy ranges already noted at baseline. After 12 weeks, the HIIT+RT group had a baseline-adjusted % change in NT-proBNP that was 25 percentage points lower than in HIIT and 33 percentage points lower than in usual care, differences that are considered clinically meaningful (4). Combining HIIT with resistance training may help maintain lower NT-proBNP concentrations -a marker of cardiac stress-, which could be relevant for long-term brain and cognitive health (5).Baseline-adjusted change in z-NT-pro-BNPFor image description, please refer to the figure legend and surrounding text.
Almela et al. (Mon,) conducted a rct in Coronary artery disease (CAD) (n=105). High-intensity interval training (HIIT) combined with resistance training (HIIT+RT) or HIIT alone vs. Usual care was evaluated on Changes in cardiac, vascular and neurotrophic blood biomarkers (time × group interaction) (p=>0.05). In patients with coronary artery disease, 12 weeks of HIIT with or without resistance training did not significantly alter cardiac, vascular, or neurotrophic blood biomarkers (all p>0.05).