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Exercise: the neglected risk factor and the neglected treatment
1 Bristol Congenital Heart Unit, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children and Bristol Royal Infirmary, Bristol, UK
2 Department of Exercise, Nutrition and Health Sciences, University of Bristol, Centre for Sport, Exercise and Health, Bristol, UK
Correspondence to:
Dr J S Dua, Bristol Congenital Heart Unit, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, 161 Meadow Way, Bradley Stoke, Bristol BS32 8BP, UK; jaspaldua@yahoo.com
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
To the editor: We read with interest, the editorial by Jelinek1 on exercise as a neglected risk factor and treatment in coronary artery disease. The studies by Stamatakis et al2 and Redfern et al3 emphasise the importance of exercise therapy in the effective management of coronary artery disease. We would like to suggest that the health benefits of exercise also apply to adults with congenital heart disease (CHD).
At least 80% of children with CHD can now expect to reach adult life. Moreover, there are now at least as many adults as children with CHD. Although surgery improves the heart function and exercise capacity in patients with congenital heart disease, overall exercise capacity usually remains lower than in subjects with normal hearts.4 In addition, adults with CHD may have a poorer quality of life, more psychosocial problems and may feel physically impaired by their CHD. The quality of life
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