Exercise is safe and effective for people born with heart defects and could help them live longer, a Scottish study found.
Patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) require lifelong monitoring with recurrent hospital admissions and repeat open heart surgeries common.
It was previously thought that for some patients with CHD exercise could be too damaging for their hearts. However, a study by the Scottish Adult Congenital Cardiac Service (SACCS) found they experience similar benefits to those without problems.
Patients were assessed using a 6-minute walk test, grip, bicep and quadriceps strength, as well as psychological measurements.
They included a 12-week programme that included an online, personalised exercise plan, a walking programme and/or breathing exercises.
READ MORE: Canal life linked to drop in heart disease in deprived Glasgow areas
The majority of participants improved on their fitness across all the physical measurements.
The study concluded that exercise is safe and deliverable when patients are given guidance and structure and can be incorporated into NHS guidance.
Niki Walker, Consultant Cardiologist at the Golden Jubilee Hospital, said: “The benefits of regular exercise are well known for the general population, but exercise and physical activity are areas where our patients often require support and advice.
“There is evidence that cardiac rehabilitation based around group exercise and peer support is beneficial in the CHD population and the provision of supervised, self-directed exercise programmes, can lead to sustained improvements in activity levels.
“Even a modest increase in physical activity can reduce morbidity, improve psychological wellbeing and protect against cardiovascular disease.”
READ MORE: Scots born with heart defects bare their scars for Kelvingrove exhibition
The study was funded by the foundation set up in honour of Professor Stewart Hillis, whose work in the treatment of adults with childhood heart defects was world renowned.
He also worked with the SFA for almost 40 years as the national squad’s official doctor and battled in vain to save Jock Stein’s life when he collapsed after suffering a heart attack at a World Cup qualifier against Wales in 1985. Professor Hillis died in 2014 at the age of 70.
Dr Mark MacGregor, Medical Director at NHS Golden Jubilee said: “This is an important study, which we can use to help patients across the country recover better, live longer and enjoy a better quality of life with congenital heart disease.”
The study by Niki Walker, Elaine Muirhead, Shelagh Brown, Jim Mearns from the SACCS team at NHS Golden Jubilee, and Honorary Research Fellow Dr Samuel Rodgers of Glasgow University is published in the International Journal of Cardiology Congenital Heart Disease.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here