Effect of Low-Intensity Cardiac Rehabilitation on Cardiac Function and Degree of Fibrosis in a White Rat Acute Myocardial Infarction Model

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of low-intensity cardiac rehabilitation exercise on the cardiac function and the degree of fibrosis in an older white rat model. This study used male Sprague-Dawley white rats that were 50 weeks old. After the acute myocardial infarction induction, Twenty of the rats were randomly allocated into an experimental group and a control group, and each of the groups consisted of 8 rats. In the experimental group, the exercise was conducted for six weeks, 30 minutes a day, five days a week, using a Rotarod treadmill for animals. The degree of myocardial fibrosis was significantly repressed in the experimental group($13.69{\pm}1.90%$) and in the control group($15.67{\pm}1.54%$)(p<0.05). However, fractional shortening and ejection fraction did not show a significant difference. The results of this study suggest that cardiac rehabilitation with low intensity treadmill exercise repress the myocardial fibrosis.