Efficacy and safety of functional electrical stimulation of lower limb muscles in elderly patients with chronic heart failure: A pilot study

Exercise training is an established modality in chronic heart failure. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) is an effective alternative mode of training in patients unwilling or unable to exercise; however, it has not been investigated in elderly patients. We sought to investigate the effects of FES on functional status, quality of life, emotional status and endothelial function in chronic heart failure patients aged 70 years or higher.

Thirty patients with stable systolic chronic heart failure (mean age 75 ± 3 years, New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II/III, 37%/63%) randomly underwent a six-week FES training programme or placebo. Questionnaires addressing quality of life (Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ), functional and overall) and emotional stress (Zung self-rating depression scale (SDS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)), as well as endothelial function (flow-mediated dilatation) were assessed at baseline and upon protocol completion.

A significant improvement in NYHA class (p = 0.005), KCCQ-functional (F = 68.6, p for interaction < 0.001), KCCQ-overall (F = 66.9, p < 0.001), BDI (F = 66.3, p < 0.001) and Zung SDS (F = 95.1, p < 0.001) was observed in the FES group compared to placebo. Patients in the FES group also had a significant increase in flow-mediated dilatation compared with placebo (F = 59.1, p < 0.01). FES-induced per cent change in flow-mediated dilatation was significantly correlated with respective per cent change in KCCQ functional (r = 0.386, p = 0.039).

In this pilot study, FES effectively improved functional status, quality of life, motional stress and endothelial function in elderly chronic heart failure patients and warrants further investigation in this particular group of patients.