Exercise as it relates to Disease/Resistance Exercise and its effects on Heart Failure patients

Chronic Heart Failure (CHF) is a serious medical condition in which the heart is no longer able to pump enough blood to meet the body's needs. Underlying problems such as structural abnormalities or cardiac dysfunction will result in impairment of the ventricles to either fill or eject blood; with this becoming an even bigger problem during exercise. CHF often occurs as a result of other heart problems such as myocardial infarction, ischaemic heart disease, hypertension and idiopathic dilated cardiomiopathy. Symptoms of CHF include breathlessness, tiring easily; particularly during exercise, irregular heart beat, oedema in the lower limbs and sudden weight gain as a result from this fluid retention. Prevalence NYHA Functional Capacity The New York Heart Association (NYHA) has developed a table which categorizes the severity of a patients heart failure and their capacity to exercise. NYHA Class How a patient with CHF feels during exercise I Patients with CHF but resulting in no limitation of physical activity. Ordinary physical activity doesn't cause undue fatigue, palpitation, dyspnea or anginal pain. II Patients with CHF resulting in slight limitation of physical activity. They are comfortable at rest. Ordinary physical activity results in fatigue, palpitation, dyspnea or anginal pain III Patients with CHF resulting in marked limitation of physical activity. They are comfortable at rest. Less than ordinary activity causes fatigue, palpitation, dyspnea or anginal pain IV Patients with CHF resulting in inability to carry on any physical activity without discomfort. Symptoms of heart failure or anginal syndrome may be present even at rest. If any physical activity is undertaken, discomfort increases.