Avaliação da função cardiovascular e qualidade de vida em pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca com e sem comportamento sedentário / Evaluation of cardiovascular function and quality of life in patients with heart failure with and without sedentary behavior

RESUMO: Fundamentos e objetivos: Apesar dos reconhecidos benefícios da prática de atividade física em pacientes com doença cardiovascular, acredita-se que pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca e fração de ejeção reduzida com comportamento não sedentário, mesmo que não pratiquem exercício físico regular, apresentem melhora da função cardiovascular e qualidade de vida em comparação a pacientes sedentários. Objetivo: comparar a capacidade funcional, função ventricular e quali-dade de vida de pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca sedentários e não sedentários. Métodos: Foram avaliados pacientes com Insuficiência Cardíaca e Fração de ejeção <50%, sendo compostos dois grupos, sedentários (n=45) e não sedentários (n=36), de acordo com o Questionário Internacional de Atividade Física. Os grupos foram submetidos à avaliação clínica e de qualidade de vida, teste de caminhada de Cooper, ecocardiograma e comparação pelo teste Qui-Quadrado para variáveis categóricas ou teste T de Student ou Mann-Whitney para variáveis contínuas. Nível de significância de 5%. Resultados: Os grupos foram homogêneos em relação às características basais e etiologia. Os pacientes do Grupo Não Sedentário apre-sentaram menos sintomas limitantes (p<0,01), menor necessidade de digitálicos (p=0,02), melhor fração de encurtamento ventricular (p=0,03) e menor aumento do volume indexado do átrio esquerdo (p=0,004). Não foram encontradas diferen-ças no teste de caminhada entre os grupos. Houve maior prejuízo do quesito capacidade funcional da qualidade de vida do grupo Sedentário. Conclusão: Considerando a limitação da amostra, pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca e comporta-mento não sedentário apresentam maior tolerabilidade ao exercício por apresentarem sintomas menos limitantes, melhor função ventricular e melhor qualidade de vida no quesito capacidade funcional quando comparados a pacientes sedentáriosRESUMOFundamentos e objetivos: Apesar dos reconhecidos benefícios da prática de atividade física em pacientes com doença cardiovascular, acredita-se que pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca e fração de ejeção reduzida com comportamento não sedentário, mesmo que não pratiquem exercício físico regular, apresentem melhora da função cardiovascular e qualidade de vida em comparação a pacientes sedentários. Objetivo: comparar a capacidade funcional, função ventricular e quali-dade de vida de pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca sedentários e não sedentários. Métodos: Foram avaliados pacientes com Insuficiência Cardíaca e Fração de ejeção <50%, sendo compostos dois grupos, sedentários (n=45) e não sedentários (n=36), de acordo com o Questionário Internacional de Atividade Física. Os grupos foram submetidos à avaliação clínica e de qualidade de vida, teste de caminhada de Cooper, ecocardiograma e comparação pelo teste Qui-Quadrado para variáveis categóricas ou teste T de Student ou Mann-Whitney para variáveis contínuas. Nível de significância de 5%. Resultados: Os grupos foram homogêneos em relação às características basais e etiologia. Os pacientes do Grupo Não Sedentário apre-sentaram menos sintomas limitantes (p<0,01), menor necessidade de digitálicos (p=0,02), melhor fração de encurtamento ventricular (p=0,03) e menor aumento do volume indexado do átrio esquerdo (p=0,004). Não foram encontradas diferen-ças no teste de caminhada entre os grupos. Houve maior prejuízo do quesito capacidade funcional da qualidade de vida do grupo Sedentário. Conclusão: Considerando a limitação da amostra, pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca e comporta-mento não sedentário apresentam maior tolerabilidade ao exercício por apresentarem sintomas menos limitantes, melhor função ventricular e melhor qualidade de vida no quesito capacidade funcional quando comparados a pacientes sedentários. (AU)

ABSTRACT: Purpose: Despite the recognized benefits of practicing physical activity in patients with cardiovascular disease, it is believed that patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction with non-sedentary behavior may present an improvement in cardiovascular function and quality of life compared to sedentary patients, even if they do not practice regular physical ex-ercise. The aim of the present study was to compare functional capacity, systolic and diastolic cardiac function and quality of life of sedentary and non-sedentary patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction. Methods: Patients with heart failure and ejection fraction below 50% were divided into two groups, Sedentary (n = 45) and Non-Sedentary (n = 36), using the IPAQ questionnaire. These two groups were evaluated with clinical evaluation, quality of life SF-36 questionnaire, Cooper walking test and transthoracic echocardiography. They were compared by Chi-Square test for categorical variables or Test T or Man-Whitney for continuous variables; the level of significance adopted in the statistical analysis was 5%. Results: The groups were homogeneous in relation to the baseline characteristics and etiology. The Non-Sedentary Group had fewer patients with severe symptoms (p <0.01), less necessity of digitalis (p = 0.02) and better left ventricle fractional shorten-ing (p = 0.03). There was no apparent difference in the walk-test data between groups. Additionally, there was a greater impairment in the functional capacity of the SF-36 Questionnaire in the Sedentary Group. Conclusion: Considering the sample limitation, patients with heart failure and non-sedentary behavior have greater tolerability to exercise because they have fewer limiting symptoms and better quality of life in the functional capacity domain than sedentary patients.

Green Tea (Camellia sinensis) Extract Increased Topoisomerase IIß, Improved Antioxidant Defense, and Attenuated Cardiac Remodeling in an Acute Doxorubicin Toxicity Model.

Experimental studies have shown the action of green tea in modulating cardiac remodeling. However, the effects of green tea on the cardiac remodeling process induced by doxorubicin (DOX) are not known. Therefore, this study is aimed at evaluating whether green tea extract could attenuate DOX-induced cardiac remodeling, assessed by cardiac morphological and functional changes and associated with the evaluation of different modulators of cardiac remodeling. The animals were divided into four groups: the control group (C), the green tea group (GT), the DOX group (D), and the DOX and green tea group (DGT). Groups C and GT received intraperitoneal sterile saline injections, D and DGT received intraperitoneal injections of DOX, and GT and DGT were fed chow supplemented with green tea extract for 35 days prior to DOX injection. After forty-eight hours, we performed an echocardiogram and euthanasia and collected the materials for analysis. Green tea attenuated DOX-induced cardiotoxicity by increasing cardiac function and decreasing the concentric remodeling. Treatment with DOX increased oxidative stress in the heart, marked by a higher level of lipid hydroperoxide (LH) and lower levels of antioxidant enzymes. Treatment with green tea increased the antioxidant enzymes' activity and decreased the production of LH. Green tea extract increased the expression of Top2-ß independent of DOX treatment. The activity of ATP synthase, citrate synthase, and complexes I and II decreased with DOX, without the effects of green tea. Both groups that received DOX presented with a lower ratio of P-akt/T-akt and a higher expression of CD45, TNFα, and intermediate MMP-2, without the effects of green tea. In conclusion, green tea attenuated cardiac remodeling induced by DOX and was associated with increasing the expression of Top2-ß and lowering oxidative stress. However, energy metabolism and inflammation probably do not receive the benefits induced by green tea in this model.

Zinc Supplementation Attenuates Cardiac Remodeling After Experimental Myocardial Infarction.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The objective of our study was to evaluate the effects of zinc supplementation on cardiac remodeling following acute myocardial infarction in rats. METHODS: Animals were subdivided into 4 groups and observed for 3 months: 1) Sham Control; 2) Sham Zinc: Sham animals receiving zinc supplementation; 3) Infarction Control; 4) Infarction Zinc. After the followup period, we studied hypertrophy and ventricular geometry, functional alterations in vivo and in vitro, changes related to collagen, oxidative stress, and inflammation, assessed by echocardiogram, isolated heart study, western blot, flow cytometer, morphometry, and spectrophotometry. RESULTS: Infarction induced a significant worsening of the functional variables. On the other hand, zinc attenuated both systolic and diastolic cardiac dysfunction induced by infarction. Considering the infarct size, there was no difference between the groups. Catalase and superoxide dismutase decreased in infarcted animals, and zinc increased its activity. We found higher expression of collagens I and III in infarcted animals, but there was no effect of zinc supplementation. Likewise, infarcted animals had higher levels of IL-10, but without zinc interference. Nrf-2 values were not different among the groups. Infarction increased the amount of Treg cells in the spleen as well as the amount of total lymphocytes. Zinc increased the amount of CD4+ in infarcted animals, but we did not observe effects in relation to Treg cells. CONCLUSION: zinc attenuates cardiac remodeling after infarction in rats; this effect is associated with modulation of antioxidant enzymes, but without the involvement of collagens I and III, Nrf-2, IL-10, and Treg cells.