Effects of Sauna bathing on Exercise Capacity and Muscle Function in HFpEF - PubMed
3 hours ago
- #Exercise capacity
- #Sauna bathing
- #HFpEF
- Sauna bathing was tested as a treatment to improve exercise capacity in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF).
- The study involved 10 weeks of supervised sauna sessions (60°C, twice weekly), with duration increasing from 8 to 15 minutes.
- Participants showed improvements in peak VO2, 6-minute walk test (6MWT), anaerobic threshold, quadriceps strength, diastolic function, and quality of life (QoL).
- Benefits declined after discontinuation of sauna sessions.
- Body fat mass decreased continuously throughout the study.
- Muscle biopsies indicated anabolic/metabolic upregulation and catabolism downregulation.
- The study concluded that sauna bathing is safe, feasible, and beneficial for HFpEF patients, though benefits diminish after withdrawal.
- A large multicentre controlled randomized trial is being planned to further investigate these findings.