Examining the impact of blood flow restriction on cardiac rehabilitation outcomes

Table 2 Summary of the main findings of the included studies on blood flow restriction in patients with cardiovascular disease

Ref.	Study population	Main findings	Safety	Adherence
Fukuda et al[29], 2013	n = 6 (male). 69 ± 12 years. Patients with cardiovascular disease (5 with old myocardial infarction and 1 dilated cardiomyopathy)	Acute effects: ↑↑ muscle activation biceps brachii ↑↑ muscle hypertrophy biceps brachii	Information not reflected in the manuscript	Information not reflected in the manuscript
Groennebaek et al[30], 2019	n = 36 (male). 63.66 ± 8 years. Patients with congestive heart failure	Chronic effects: ↑↑ Functional capacity (6MWT), ↑↑ Maximum isometric strength, ↑↑ quality of life, ↑↑ mitochondrial function	No severe adverse events were recorded, but all patients experienced mild vertigo	100%
Ishizaka et al[31], 2019	n = 7 (6 male) mean age: 48 years. Patients with cardiac disease (not specify which one)	Acute effects: ↑↑ Electromyography muscle activity of rectus femoris, VL, and VM at 10% and 20% intensity	Information not reflected in the manuscript	Information not reflected in the manuscript
Kambič et al[26], 2019	n = 24 (18 male). 60 ± 2 years. Coronary artery disease patients	Chronic effects: ↑↑ muscle strength, ↓↓SBP, (NC) VL diameter, (NC) brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation, (NC) insulin sensitivity	No training-related adverse events were recorded	100%
Kambič et al[32], 2021	n = 24 (18 male). 60 ± 2 years. Coronary artery disease patients	Chronic effects: ↓↓ SBP, ↓DBP, (NC) N-terminal prohormone B-type natriuretic hormone, (NC) Fibrinogen, (NC) D-dimer. Acute effects: ↑↑ Heart rate, ↓↓SBP and DBP in the third set	No training-related adverse events were recorded	100%
Madarame et al[33], 2013	n = 9 (7 men). 57 ± 6 years. Patients with stable ischemic heart disease	Acute effects: ↑↑ Plasma noradrenaline, ↑↑ plasma D-dimer, ↑↑ high sensitive C-reactive protein, (NC) fibrinogen/fibrin degradation products, (NC) heart rate	Relative safety	100%
Nakajima et al[34], 2010	n = 7 (7 men). 52 ± 4 years. Patients with ischemic heart disease	Chronic effects: ↑↑ leg press, leg curl and leg extension strength, ↑↑ muscle CSA of quadriceps femoris, hamstring and adductor, ↑↑ VO2peak, ↑↑ VO2AT, (NC) IGF-1, (NC) hsCRP	No training-related adverse events were recorded	100%
Ogawa et al[27], 2021	n = 21 (18 male). 69.6 ± 12.6 years. Early post-cardiac surgery patients	Chronic effects: ↑↑ anterior mid-thigh thickness, ↑↑ skeletal muscle mass index, ↑↑ knee extensor strength, ↑↑ walking speed, (NC) CPK, (NC) D-dimer, (NC) handgrip strength	No adverse events were recorded	Information not reflected in the manuscript
Tanaka and Takarada[35], 2018	n = 30 (30 male). 60.7 ± 11.1 years. Patients with post-infarction heart failure	Chronic effects: ↑↑ Peak VO2/W, ↑↑ Serum BNP levels, ↑↑ C-reactive protein, (NC) Weight, (NC) BMI, (NC) thigh circumference, (NC) anaerobic threshold, (NC) VE, (NC) VCO2, (NC) gradient of the VE–VCO2 relationship, (NC) Blood urea nitrogen, (NC) Creatinine, (NC) eGFR, (NC) Glucose, (NC) HbA1c, (NC) TG, NC HDL-C, (NC) LDL-C, (NC) Urid acid.	No serious adverse events were recorded	Information not reflected in the manuscript

↑/↓: Trends to positive changes but with no significant changes; ↑↑/↓↓: Indicate statistically significant changes (reported P < 0.05) changes, the arrow direction denotes the increase (↑) or decrease (↓) of the variable; NC: No change; 6MWT: Six-minute walk test; EM: Electromyography; GRF: Ground reaction force; VL: Vastus lateralis; VM: Vastus medialis; RF: Rectus femoris; SBP: Systolic blood pressure; DBP: Diastolic blood pressure; CSA: Cross-sectional area; BMI: Body mass index; Peak VO₂/W: Peak oxygen consumption per unit of body weight; Serum BNP levels: Serum brain natriuretic peptide levels; AT: Anaerobic threshold; VE: Ventilation; VCO₂: Volume carbon dioxide; BUN: Blood urea nitrogen; eGFR: Estimated glomerular filtration rate; HbA1c: Glycated hemoglobin; TG: Triglycerides; HDL-C: High-density lipoprotein cholesterol; LDL-C: Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; SMI: Skeletal muscle mass index; CPK: Creatine phosphokinase; IGF-1: Insulin-like growth factor 1; hsCRP: High-sensitivity C-reactive protein.