Echocardiographic evaluation of stress test for determining safety of participation in strength training.

Suitability for safe participation in aerobic exercise is typically determined by a cardiopulmonary exercise test, using a treadmill or cycle. With increased participation in strength training by healthy clients as well as rehabilitation patients, there is a need to develop a test for determining suitability for safe participation in strength training. This investigation describes a strength stress test that may be used for determining safety of participation in strength training.

Analysis of cause-specific mortality in the Atrial Fibrillation Follow-up Investigation of Rhythm Management (AFFIRM) study.

Background: Expectations that reestablishing and maintaining sinus rhythm in patients with atrial fibrillation might improve survival were disproved in the Atrial Fibrillation Follow-up Investigation of Rhythm Management (AFFIRM) study. This report describes the cause-specific modes of death in the AFFIRM treatment groups.

Methods And Results: All deaths in patients enrolled in AFFIRM underwent blinded review by the AFFIRM Events Committee, and a mode of death was assigned.

Effects of metoprolol CR/XL on mortality and hospitalizations in patients with heart failure and history of hypertension.

Background: We describe the effect of controlled-release/extended-release (CR/XL) metoprolol succinate once daily on mortality and hospitalizations among patients with a history of hypertension complicated by chronic systolic heart failure.

Methods And Results: We enrolled 3,991 patients with chronic heart failure of New York Heart Association functional class II-IV with an ejection fraction of < or = 0.40, stabilized with optimum standard therapy, in a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled study.