Innovative Cardiac Rehabilitation: Effects of Adaptive Postural Balance Exercise on Coronary Artery Disease and Type 2 Diabetes.

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Adaptive Postural Balance Cardiac Rehabilitation Exercise (APBCRE) on glycolipid metabolism and exercise endurance in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Specifically, we compared the efficacy of APBCRE with aerobic exercise (AE) alone and irregular exercise (IE).

Patients and methods: This randomized controlled trial included 348 patients with CAD, comprising 261 patients with T2DM and 87 non-diabetic CAD patients as a control group. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups: the APBCRE group, the AE group, the IE group, or the non-diabetic AE control group. The intervention lasted 8 weeks, including a structured 6-week training phase. Metabolic markers and exercise endurance were assessed at baseline (week 1) and post-intervention (week 8). Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) was utilized to individualize exercise prescriptions and optimize intervention intensity.

Results: The APBCRE group demonstrated significant improvements in fasting blood glucose (FBG) (-11.34%, from 7.89 to 6.99 mmol/L, p < 0.05), HbA1c (-8.87%, from 7.20% to 6.56%, p < 0.05), and LDL-C levels (-12.21%, from 2.44 to 2.14 mmol/L, p < 0.05) compared to the AE and IE groups. While both APBCRE and AE improved lipid profiles, APBCRE demonstrated superior enhancements in exercise endurance, with ˙VO ₂ max increasing by 18.71% (from 14.19 to 16.86 mL/min/kg, p < 0.05) and AT ˙VO ₂ increasing by 16.00% (from 11.62 to 13.48 mL/min/kg, p < 0.05).

Conclusion: These findings support the efficacy of APBCRE in improving glycolipid metabolism, exercise endurance, and neuromuscular coordination in patients with CAD and T2DM compared to AE alone.