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Background: Despite exercise capacity and quality-of-life benefits, pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) and cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programmes are not easily accessed because of several barriers. A solution may be telerehabilitation (TR), in which patients exercise in their communities while they are monitored via teletechnology. However, the benefits of TR for the purposes of PR and CR have not been systematically reviewed. Objective: To determine whether the benefits of the exercise component of PR and CR using TR are comparable to usual-care (UC) programmes. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed of the Medline, Embase, and CINAHL databases up to July 13, 2015. Meta-analyses were performed for peak oxygen consumption, peak workload, exercise test duration, and 6-minute walk test (6MWT) distance using the I2 statistic and forest plots displaying standardized mean difference (SMD). Results: Of 1,431 citations found, 8 CR studies met the inclusion criteria. No differences were found in exercise outcomes between UC and TR groups for CR studies, except in exercise test duration, which slightly favoured UC (SMD 0.268, 95% CI: 0.002, 0.534, p < 0.05). Only 1 PR study was included, and it showed similar improvements on the 6MWT between the UC and TR groups. Conclusion: TR for patients with cardiac conditions provided benefits similar to UC with no adverse effects reported. Similar studies of TR for patients with pulmonary conditions need to be conducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating illness. Symptoms include profound fatigue and distinctive post-exertional malaise (PEM). We asked whether a submaximal exercise test would prove useful for identifying different patterns of tissue oxygen utilization in individuals with ME/CFS versus healthy subjects. Such a test has potential to aid with ME/CFS diagnosis, or to characterize patients' illness. Methods: A case-control study of 16 patients with ME/CFS compared to 16 healthy controls completing a 3-min handgrip protocol was performed. Response was measured using near-infrared spectroscopy, resulting in measurements of oxygenated (O2Hb) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (HHb) over wrist extensors and flexors. Changes in O2Hb (delta (d)O2Hb) and HHb (dHHb) absorbance between the first and last contraction were calculated, as were the force-time product of all contractions, measured as tension-time index (TTI), and ratings of perceived exertion (RPE). Results: Individuals with ME/CFS demonstrated smaller dO2Hb and dHHb than controls. However, after adjusting for TTI and change in total hemoglobin (delta (d)tHb), differences in dO2Hb and dHHb were reduced, with large overlapping variances. RPE was significantly higher for cases than controls, particularly at rest. Conclusions: Relative to controls, participants with ME/CFS demonstrated higher RPE, lower TTI, and reduced dO2Hb and dHHb during repetitive handgrip exercise, although considerable variance was observed. With further study, submaximal exercise testing may prove useful for stratifying patients with a lower propensity for inducing PEM, and have the ability to establish baseline intensities for exercise prescription. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on a study that aimed at determining if respiratory muscle training (RMT) helps in improving sport performance as well as respiratory muscle strength. The study was conducted on several electronic databases. The study evaluated sport performance, exercise capacity, respiratory muscle strength as well as endurance.

Abstract: Application of heat to muscle is commonly advocated to enhance the efficacy of stretching. However, the effect of this combined therapy using different methods of heating, applied to different muscles, and after one or multiple treatments, is not known. To perform a systematic review to address the question: Does stretching augmented by heat application result in greater gains in range of motion (ROM) compared to stretch alone? The following databases were searched for original articles that evaluated our question: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, SPORTDiscus and PEDro databases. After title and abstract screening followed by full-text screening, the quality of included articles was assessed and their data was abstracted. Screening, data abstraction and quality assessment was performed and consensus was achieved by two reviewers. Range of motion (ROM) data were synthesized by meta-analyses for overall effect and subgroup analysis according to muscle group, method of heat application, single or multiple treatments, and reported tightness of muscle. Twelve studies were included and reported the effects of stretch with or without heat on ROM of 352 participants. Heat applications included ultrasound, shortwave diathermy and hot packs. Meta-analyses and subgroup analyses demonstrated greater increases in ROM after heat and stretch (H + S) than heat alone. Subgroup analysis of muscle groups and the method of heat application showed some trends, but no significant differences. Multiple treatments (more so than single treatments) showed consistent treatment effects of H + S versus stretch alone amongst subgroups. Muscles described as tight did not show a greater treatment effect in response to H + S compared to muscles not reported as tight. Heating provides an added benefit on stretch related gains of ROM in healthy people. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]