Resistance Exercise With Blood Flow Restriction by Vascular Occlusion on Myocardial Function in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction

Launched by CENTRE HOSPITALIER UNIVERSITAIRE DE NĪMES · Aug 8, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying a special type of exercise called resistance training combined with blood flow restriction (BFR) to see if it can help improve heart function and muscle strength in people with heart failure, specifically those with reduced heart pumping ability (called reduced ejection fraction). Traditional resistance training can be hard for these patients because it usually requires moderate to high effort. BFR involves gently restricting blood flow during low-intensity exercise, which may help muscles and the heart get stronger without the need for heavy exercise. The study aims to compare how well this combined method works compared to regular resistance exercise alone.

People who might be eligible for this trial are adults with heart failure whose heart’s pumping ability is 50% or less, who have been advised to do heart rehabilitation, and who have no medical reasons preventing them from exercising. Participants will be asked to give their informed consent and must have health insurance. During the study, they can expect to take part in supervised exercise sessions where blood flow restriction is applied safely while they do resistance exercises. This trial will also use advanced heart imaging techniques to better understand how this type of training affects heart muscle function. If you have heart failure and are interested in safer ways to improve your strength and heart health, this study might be an important option to consider.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • LVEF ≤ 50%
• • Patients with an indication for cardiovascular rehabilitation in the first stay or not (according to national recommendations, as soon as possible after an exacerbation or at any time in a patient with chronic heart failure) (Bigot et al., 2024)
• • No medical contraindication to physical activity
• • Patient has given free and informed consent and signed the consent form
• • Patient affiliated with or benefiting from a health insurance scheme
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Patient participating in another Category I interventional study, or having participated in another interventional study in the last month
• • Patient in an exclusion period determined by a previous study
• • Patient under court protection, guardianship or curatorship
• • Unable to provide informed consent, or patient refuses to sign consent form
• • Pregnant, parturient or breast-feeding patient
• • Moderate to severe peripheral arterial disease. Arterial Doppler scan for arterial stenosis, with measurement of femoral and distal flows.
• • Active or recent deep vein thrombosis. Check with venous Doppler ultrasound, looking for venous compressibility at the roots of the thighs, and 4-point venous ultrasound.
• • Medication known to alter the effects of ischemic conditioning (cyclosporine, glibenclamide).
• • Uncontrolled arterial hypertension
• • Severe valvular disease