The impact of a cardiac rehabilitation course on BDNF level changes and functional capacity in acute myocardial infarction patients

Background: Acute myocardial infarction refers to a reduction or amputation of coronary artery circulation leading to myocardial necrosis. BDNF is expressed in atherosclerotic arteries, vascular smooth muscle, and endothelial cells and is involved in angiogenesis, the inflammatory response, and apoptosis of myocardial regeneration after infarction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a cardiac rehabilitation period on changes in BDNF levels and functional capacity in patients with acute myocardial infarction. Methods: The present study was performed on 30 men with acute coronary syndrome with a pretest-posttest design and the samples were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group performed a cardiac rehabilitation program for 6 weeks. The control group did not perform any training during this period. Before and after the rehabilitation program, BDNF levels were measured by the American Diaplus Kit in terms of picograms per milliliter and participants' functional capacity by a modified Bruce test. Analysis of covariance was used to compare BDNF levels and functional capacity of cardiac rehabilitation and control groups. Discussion & Conclusion: Data were analyzed by covariance and the results showed that cardiac rehabilitation training had a significant effect on increasing BDNF levels and functional capacity (P≤0.05). In general, it can be said that cardiac rehabilitation exercise program can play an important role in improving the physical and physiological condition of patients with acute myocardial infarction.