Functional Capacity, Muscle Strength And Quality Of Life In Heart Failure

Introduction: Patients with heart failure (HF) may present reduced strength of peripheral and respiratory muscles, leading to an impaired functional capacity (FC) as measured by the distance covered in the six-minute walk test (6MWT) and the shuttle walking test (SWT) and may interfere in the quality of life (QoL) of these individuals. Objective: To measure respiratory and peripheral muscle strength, as well as to analyze the correlation between these variables, FC and quality of life in outpatients with HF, as well as to compare them with those found in healthy individuals. Methods: Manual dynamometry was used to evaluate manual grip strength (MGS), manovacuometry for the evaluation of maximal respiratory pressures (MRP), 6MWT and SWT for FC evaluation, and the SF-36 questionnaire to assess the quality of life. Results: A total of 72 individuals were evaluated. However, 23 subjects with HF (Study Group - G1) and 11 healthy (Control Group - G2) participated in the study. The MRP, as well as MGS did not present significant difference between the groups. A significant difference was observed when comparing the groups regarding the distances of the 6MWT and the SWT. In G1, a significant correlation was observed between the distances of the 6MWT and the SWT with the FC domain of SF-36 (r=0.52 and p=0.01, and r=0.41 and p= 0.05, respectively). Conclusion: The studied population presented reduction of the FC domain and nevertheless, absence of respiratory and peripheral muscular weaknesses. There was a correlation between the distances of the 6MWT and the SWT with the FC domain.