Publications by authors named "Maria Clara Alencar"

Interval exercise delays critical mechanical-ventilatory constraints with positive consequences on Dyspnoea and exercise tolerance in COPD. We hypothesized that those advantages of interval exercise would be partially off-set in patients showing excessive ventilation (V˙E) to metabolic demand (V˙CO). Sixteen men (FEV = 42.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Exercise ventilation (') relative to carbon dioxide output (' ) is particularly relevant to patients limited by the respiratory system, those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). High '-' (poor ventilatory efficiency) has been found to be a key physiological abnormality in symptomatic patients with largely preserved forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV). Establishing an association between high '-' and exertional dyspnoea in mild COPD provides evidence that exercise intolerance is not a mere consequence of detraining.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective:: To evaluate the influence of chronic heart failure (CHF) on resting lung volumes in patients with COPD, i.e., inspiratory fraction-inspiratory capacity (IC)/TLC-and relative inspiratory reserve-[1 - (end-inspiratory lung volume/TLC)].

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To investigate whether the opposite effects of heart failure (HF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on exercise ventilatory inefficiency (minute ventilation [(Equation is included in full-text article.)E]-carbon dioxide output [(Equation is included in full-text article.)CO2] relationship) would negatively impact its prognostic relevance.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hypocapnia and endothelial dysfunction might impair microvascular cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cerebrovascular reactivity to CO (CVR). Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characteristically associated with chronic alveolar hyperventilation and microvascular endothelial dysfunction. We therefore determined CBF (pre-frontal blood flow index (BFI) by the indocyanine green-near infrared spectroscopy methodology) during hypocapnia and hypercapnia in 25 PAH patients and 10 gender- and age-matched controls.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Systolic heart failure is a common and disabling co-morbidity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which may increase exercise ventilation due to heightened neural drive and/or impaired pulmonary gas exchange efficiency. The influence of heart failure on exercise ventilation, however, remains poorly characterized in COPD. In a prospective study, 98 patients with moderate to very severe COPD [41 with coexisting heart failure; 'overlap' (left ventricular ejection fraction < 50%)] underwent an incremental cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Heart failure, a prevalent and disabling co-morbidity of COPD, may impair cardiac output and muscle blood flow thereby contributing to exercise intolerance. To investigate the role of impaired central and peripheral hemodynamics in limiting exercise tolerance in COPD-heart failure overlap, cycle ergometer exercise tests at 20% and 80% peak work rate were performed by overlap (FEV1 = 56.9 ± 15.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cerebral blood flow (CBF) and oxygenation (COx) are generally well-preserved in COPD. It is unknown whether prevalent cardiovascular co-morbidities, such as heart failure, may impair CBF and COx responses to exertion. Eighteen males with moderate-to-severe COPD (8 with and 10 without overlapping heart failure) underwent a progressive exercise test with pre-frontal CBF and COx measurements (indocyanine green and near-infrared spectroscopy).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Heart failure (HF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) coexistence increases morbidity and mortality. The intercept of ventilation (VEint) on the VE vs. carbon dioxide production (VCO2) relationship during exercise has been found to vary in proportion with dead space (VD) in HF.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF