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Despite effective medication regimens, patients with heart failure often have diminished quality of life and persistent fatigue and dyspnea, and require recurrent hospitalizations. Prior studies of exercise for these patients have been relatively small and short term and have produced inconsistent results. In this study, researchers in the U.S., Canada, and France recruited 2331 outpatients with stable heart failure (NYHA class II–IV symptoms, despite optimal medical therapy; ejection fraction, ≤35%).
Patients received educational materials and were randomized to a structured exercise program or to usual care. Intervention patients first attended a supervised exercise program (3 times weekly for 3 months, 30–35 min/session at 60%–70% of maxi…