The study evaluated the influence of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) on heart rate variability (HRV) in men with coronary artery disease (CAD) with and without diabetes. Method: The study population included 141 male CAD patients prospectively and consecutively admitted to an outpatient comprehensive CR program. Twenty-seven patients with type-2 diabetes were compared with 114 males without diabetes. The participants performed a 45-min cycle ergometer interval training alternating 4-min workload and a 2-min active restitution three times a week for 8 weeks. The training intensity was adjusted so that the patient’s heart rate achieved the training heart rate calculated according to the Karvonen formula. At the baseline and after 8 weeks, all the patients underwent the HRV assessment. Results: HRV indices in the patients with diabetes were significantly lower as compared to the patients without diabetes in SDNN, TP, LF parameters, both at the baseline and after 8 weeks of CR. After 8 weeks of CR, a significant improvement of TP, SDNN, pNN50% and HF occurred in the patients without diabetes, whereas in the patients with diabetes only HF component improved significantly. Conclusions: As regards HRV indices, CR seems to be less effective in patients with CAD and type-2 diabetes.
Traditional risk factors as determinants of heart rate recovery in patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 without known coronary artery disease