High-intensity exercise training improves perioperative risk stratification in the high-risk patient.
George A RoseMichael J AdamsonRichard G DaviesIan R AppaduraiJacqueline K LimbergPublished in: Physiological reports (2021)
Exercise prehabilitation prior to major surgery can improve cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and clinical outcome. However, in patients deemed "high--risk" for surgery, the feasibility, optimum training modality and its intensity, duration, and frequency are yet to be defined. We assessed the cardiorespiratory fitness of a 70-year-old female patient requiring major thoraco-abdominal surgery for reconstruction of her esophagus. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) on a cycle ergometer was used to determine CRF. A baseline CPET confirmed poor CRF and placed her in a high surgical risk group. This was followed by 16 weeks of unsupervised, home-based, moderate-intensity steady-state (MISS) training followed by 10 weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) under the combined supervision of an exercise physiologist and clinician in hospital. Following MISS training, CPET metrics failed to improve: peak oxygen uptake decreased (14.7-13.7 ml O2 ·kg-1 ·min-1 ; -7%) together with peak power (73-70 W; -4%) and anaerobic threshold (AT) increased (7.8-8.3 ml O2 ·kg-1 ·min-1 ; +6%). However, HIIT resulted in impressive improvement in CRF. Peak oxygen uptake (13.7-18.6 ml O2 ·kg-1 ·min-1 ; +36%), AT (8.3-10.5 ml O2 ·kg-1 ·min-1 ; +27%), peak power (70-102 W; +46%), minute ventilation (35.8-57.7 L·min-1 ; +61%), and peak heart rate (100-133 b·min-1 ; +33%) all increased. Ventilatory equivalents for carbon dioxide at AT ( V ˙ E / V ˙ CO2 -AT) improved (30-28; -7%). The improvement in CRF resulted in surgical reclassification from high to low risk. In conclusion, preoperative HIIT training can confer a marked improvement in CRF in an elderly surgical patient and is associated with a corresponding reduction in perioperative risk.
Keyphrases
- high intensity
- resistance training
- heart rate
- virtual reality
- carbon dioxide
- minimally invasive
- patients undergoing
- end stage renal disease
- cardiac surgery
- blood pressure
- coronary artery bypass
- heart rate variability
- chronic kidney disease
- newly diagnosed
- peritoneal dialysis
- healthcare
- acute kidney injury
- skeletal muscle
- machine learning
- ejection fraction
- intensive care unit
- acute coronary syndrome
- risk assessment
- middle aged
- prognostic factors
- coronary artery disease
- heavy metals
- gestational age
- surgical site infection
- respiratory failure
- patient reported