Participants
acute myocardial infarction, impaired cognitive status, valvular heart diseases, musculoskeletal disorders, asymmetric septal hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
ACUTE MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION, CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS, VALVULAR HEART DISEASES, MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS, HEART
Individuals of both genders, aged ≥ 40 years, were recruited from the outpatient cardiology clinic of a tertiary public hospital in southern Brazil. The inclusion criteria were: clinically stable HF (ischemic and non-ischemic) for at least three months before randomization, diagnosed according to clinical records; New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional classes II-III, with slight or clear limitation of physical activity, respectively; left ventricular ejection fraction ≤ 45%; and optimized pharmacological treatment. Individuals were excluded if: they were enrolled in another clinical trial involving physical training protocols or in regular practice of physical exercise in the previous three months; they had decompensated HF; they presented acute myocardial infarction and/or cardiac surgery in the previous six months; they suffered from severe valvular heart diseases and/or uncontrolled cardiac arrhythmias; they had asymmetric septal hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with dynamic obstruction in the outflow pathway; they suffered from musculoskeletal disorders that would limit the execution of the exercise program; impaired cognitive status that would compromise the understanding and the execution of the study protocols.