Efficacy of an m-Health Cardiac Rehabilitation Program in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction
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ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05002075 |
Recruitment Status :
Recruiting
First Posted : August 12, 2021
Last Update Posted : December 2, 2022
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Condition or disease | Intervention/treatment | Phase |
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Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction | Other: m-health cardiac rehabilitation | Not Applicable |
Approximately 6.2 million adults in the United States suffer from heart failure (HF), of which almost one-half maintain a left ventricle ejection fraction (EF) >50% known as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). The prevalence of HFpEF has been increasing as compared with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) over time, particularly in older adults. HFpEF is associated with a high morbidity and mortality burden and remains recalcitrant to available pharmacotherapies, significantly highlighting the need for novel strategies for management. Emerging data suggests HFpEF is a multiorgan disease with complex pathophysiology culminating in debilitating exercise intolerance (EI). This key clinical manifestation of HFpEF, stems from multiple causal pathways: accelerated fitness decline with aging, high comorbidity burden, sarcopenia, impaired cardiovascular reserve, and skeletal muscle myopathy. EI demonstrated by dyspnea and fatigue cascades into functional deconditioning and reduced quality of life (QOL). In addition to EI, >90% of patients with HFpEF are pre-frail or frail and demonstrate physical function limitations. Unfortunately, these characteristic clinical findings in HFpEF are strongly predictive of death and hospitalization. There is an urgent need to develop effective therapeutic approaches targeting EI and physical function to achieve meaningful improvements in patient-reported and clinical outcomes in HFpEF.
Supervised exercise training has been shown to improve functional status, exercise capacity, quality of life (QOL), and lower risk of hospitalization in patients with HF with most studies conducted in the HFrEF population. Smaller trials have demonstrated significant improvements in exercise capacity and QOL with supervised exercise training in HFpEF.5 Accordingly, the AHA/ACC 2013 HF guidelines recommend exercise and cardiac rehabilitation (CR) for patients with chronic HF who can participate in exercise to improve QOL and functional status. Furthermore, a statement from the AHA committee on exercise, rehabilitation, and prevention recommends exercise intensity, duration, and frequency should be tailored to the individual needs of patients. In 2014, HFrEF became a reimbursable diagnosis for comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation (CR) but HFpEF was excluded due to lack of large-scale clinical end-point driven trial evidence. Despite the established benefits, CR is widely underutilized with <10% of eligible HF participants engaging in the same. CR participation barriers include comprehensive institutional expertise needed, widespread regulations, low reimbursement rates, high patient cost, patient time and travel, and facility requirement. Considering the benefits effects of exercise training on patient-oriented functional outcomes in HFpEF and the lack of availability of the current supervised exercise CR model (3 times/week x 12 weeks) for this patient population, there is a need for a more feasible, scalable, and cost-effective alternative approach to delivering exercise training.
Home-based CR using a m-Health platform is a novel alternative to supervised CR that can deliver clinician specific exercise interventions and CR wellness education with remote monitoring and care coordination. The feasibility and efficacy of home-based CR among patients with HFpEF have not been evaluated but have a critical potential impact for this population. This is particularly relevant given the focus on telehealth and home-based in the era of COVID-19. This represents a significant knowledge gap and opportunity considering the current clinical reality that patients with HFpEF have a high burden of physical function impairment and exercise intolerance, the previously reported benefits of exercise training in this patient population, and the current lack of therapeutic opportunities that can be feasibly implemented on a population scale.
Home-based CR with m-health platform is not the standard of care currently, but is an exploratory intervention.
Study Type : | Interventional (Clinical Trial) |
Estimated Enrollment : | 20 participants |
Allocation: | Randomized |
Intervention Model: | Parallel Assignment |
Masking: | None (Open Label) |
Primary Purpose: | Treatment |
Official Title: | Efficacy of an m-Health Cardiac Rehabilitation Program in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial |
Actual Study Start Date : | November 20, 2021 |
Estimated Primary Completion Date : | March 2023 |
Estimated Study Completion Date : | March 2023 |

Arm | Intervention/treatment |
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No Intervention: Usual care arm
Participants in the usual control group will receive standard of care per their providers' discretion.
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Experimental: m-health cardiac rehabilitation intervention arm
Participants randomized to m-Health cardiac rehabilitation will receive a 24-week home-based exercise program
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Other: m-health cardiac rehabilitation
Participants randomized to m-Health cardiac rehabilitation will receive a 24-week home-based exercise program delivered via a previously validated, commercially available smartphone platform called Movn (Moving Analytics, California). This app includes a patient-facing iOS and Android compatible smartphone app and an integrated hospital-facing online dashboard for remote monitoring and care coordination by a trained coach |
- Change from baseline Standard physical performance battery score at 3 and 6 months [ Time Frame: 3 months and 6 months ]SPPB score is a well-validated measure of physical function using 3 components: 4-m gait speed, time to complete 5 chair rises, and standing balance. Each component is scored on a 0-4 scale and summed for an overall score range of 0-12.
- Peak VO2 [ Time Frame: 6 months ]Peak VO2 is a gold-standard measure of aerobic exercise capacity and will be measured by maximal exercise test using a previously established ergometer protocol
- 6-minute walk distance [ Time Frame: 3 months and 6 months ]6-MWD is a simple and well-validated measure of submaximal exercise capacity and does not require any exercise equipment or advanced training for technicians
- Quality of Life using Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ) score [ Time Frame: 3 months and 6 months ]QOL will be assessed using the KCCQ score, which is a self-administered questionnaire that assesses a patient's perception of their heart failure with regard to the psychological, physical, and socioeconomic aspects of life. Minimum value is 0 and maximum value is 100. Lower scores means a worse outcome

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Ages Eligible for Study: | 18 Years and older (Adult, Older Adult) |
Sexes Eligible for Study: | All |
Accepts Healthy Volunteers: | No |
Inclusion criteria:
- Adults age> 18 years
- HFpEF with left ventricular ejection fraction >50%
- Clinically stable and no hospitalization in last 4 weeks
- Estimated glomerular filtration rate > 45 mL/min/1.73 m2 as measured by the simplified MDRD formula
- Stable diuretic regimen
Exclusion criteria:
- History of cancer or end stage lung disease
- Estimated glomerular filtration rate < 45 mL/min/1.73 m2 as measured by the simplified MDRD formula
- Recent HF decompensation
- Inability to do exercise test
- Inability to provide written informed consent
- History of falls

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT05002075
United States, Texas | |
UT Southwestern Medical Center | Recruiting |
Dallas, Texas, United States, 75235 | |
Contact: Ambarish Pandey, MD 214-645-9762 ambarish.pandey@utsouthwestern.edu | |
Sub-Investigator: Vinayak Subramanian, MD |
Responsible Party: | Ambarish Pandey, Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: | NCT05002075 |
Other Study ID Numbers: |
STU-2021-0329 |
First Posted: | August 12, 2021 Key Record Dates |
Last Update Posted: | December 2, 2022 |
Last Verified: | November 2022 |
Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement: | |
Plan to Share IPD: | No |
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Drug Product: | No |
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Device Product: | No |
HFpEF Cardiac rehabilitation |
Heart Failure Heart Diseases Cardiovascular Diseases |