Exercise improves quality of life for heart failure patients

"Heart failure patients who participated in exercise training quickly improved their quality of life, and this continued for at least a year, researchers reported at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2008. The Effect of Exercise Training on Health-related Quality of Life in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure: An HF-ACTION Substudy was presented as a late-breaking clinical trial. 'These findings are particularly important because this is the best medicated population in a heart failure trial that I have ever seen presented or published,' said Ileana Pina, M.D., chair of the HF-ACTION steering committee and a professor of medicine at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. 'This is really evidence-based care. No one can say, 'Well, they weren't well-medicated so maybe the exercise was taking the place of medication.' The benefits from exercise are on top of medication and devices.'" - AHA