Patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) can benefit from regular moderate–intensity exercise without worsening disease or increasing risk of arrhythmic events, according to results of the RESET–HCM trial. Formulating exercise advice for patients with HCM is “challenging” due to concern about trigging arrhythmias and the clinical benefit of exercise has not been established in this patient population, the authors note in their article.  

“Decreased oxygen consumption has been associated with adverse outcomes in HCM and this simple intervention has now been shown to improve oxygen consumption,” Dr. Saberi commented. There were no cases of sustained ventricular arrhythmia, sudden cardiac arrest, appropriate defibrillator shock, or death in either group. Limitations of the study include the absence of blinding, small sample size and short length of follow up. The exercise prescription investigated in this trial is simple, practical, and easily implemented in clinical practice. “Defining a safe level of exercise for patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is still a work in progress. The findings of this clinical trial, although preliminary, represent an important beginning in using data from randomized clinical trials to guide exercise recommendations for patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,” author concludes.

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