We determined the effect of different exercise training modalities in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, including strength training (n = 17), endurance training (n = 16), and combined strength and endurance (n = 14) (half of the endurance and half of the strengthening exercises). Data were compared at baseline, the end of the 12-week exercise-training program, and 12 weeks later. Improvement in the walking distance was only significant in the strength group. Increases in submaximal exercise capacity for the endurance group were significantly higher than those observed in the strength group but were of similar magnitude than those in the combined training modality, which in turn were significantly higher than for the strength group. Increases in the strength of the muscle groups measured in five weight lifting exercises were significantly higher in the strength group than in the endurance group but were of similar magnitude than in the combined training group, which again showed significantly higher increases than subjects in the endurance group. Any training modality showed significant improvements of the breathlessness score and the dyspnea dimension of the chronic respiratory questionnaire. In conclusion, the combination of strength and endurance training seems an adequate training strategy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients.

Patients with mitochondrial myopathies (MM) usually suffer from exercise intolerance due to their impaired oxidative capacity and physical deconditioning. We evaluated the effects of a 12-week supervised randomized rehabilitation program involving endurance training in patients with MM. Twenty MM patients were assigned to a training or control group. For three nonconsecutive days each week, patients combined cycle exercise at 70% of their peak work rate with three upper-body weight-lifting exercises performed at 50% of maximum capacity. Training increased maximal oxygen uptake (28.5%), work output (15.5%), and minute ventilation (40%), endurance performance (62%), walking distance in shuttle walking test (+95 m), and peripheral muscle strength (32%-62%), and improved Nottingham Health Profile scores (21.47%) and clinical symptoms. Control MM patients did not change from baseline. Results show that our exercise program is an adequate training strategy for patients with mitochondrial myopathy.

It is well known that the immune response declines with senescence and it is suggested that these changes render an individual susceptible to infection, autoimmune phenomena and cancer. Bacterial and viral infections are a major cause of illness and death amongst aged subjects, and once infection is established, the elderly also have a diminished capacity to prevent its spread (1). The cellular and molecular basis for this age-related decline in immunocompetence are still unknown and, possibly, are related to an alteration in cell transduction mechanisms (2).

No abstract

No abstract