Physical training of the patients with coronary heart disease: noninvasive strategies for the evaluation of its effects on the oxygentransport system and myocardial ischemia.

To clarify the central effects of physical training on patients with coronary heart disease, 81 subjects were selected for the present study. Evaluations of the oxygen transport system function were performed according to the definition proposed by Bruce and others in terms of FAI (functional aerobic impairment), LVI (left ventricular impairment) or MRI (myocardial reserve impairment), CRI (chronotropic reserve impairment) and PCI (peripheral circulatory impairment). Remarkable improvement in left ventricular impairment was found in those patients with single vessel disease or those who experienced disappearance of chest pain after the completion of the program. In another series of study on myocardial perfusion performed on 11 patients with coronary heart disease, improvement in ischemia was also demonstrated in 7 of 8 patients who revealed redistribution pattern in 201TL exercise stress images specifying myocardial ischemia. In conclusion, exercise training could induce improvements not only the left ventricular functions characterized by increased maximal pressure rate product and maximal heart rate, but also in myocardial ischemia. Further studies are needed to specify its effects, since natural progression or regression of the disease process itself may influence the results.