Early heart rate recovery after a 6-min walking test in patients after percutaneous aortic valve implantation coresponds with clinical benefits

Background Time-appropriate return to a resting heart rate (HR) after cessation of exercise is a marker for predicting outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF). We aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of HR recovery in functional improvement in patients with severe aortic stenosis after percutaneous aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Methods 6 min walk test (6MWT) was performed in 93 individuals before TAVI and in 3 months follow up. The change in walking distance was measured. We analyzed also the differences between baseline HR, HR at the end of the test, and HR at the 1st, 2nd and 3rd minute of recovery. Results After 3 months the distance of 6MWT in TAVI patients improved by 39±63 m and reached a total of 322±117 m. The differences between HR after 2 min of recovery and baseline HR in pre-TAVI after a 6MWT was the only significant predictor of waking distance improvement during follow-up in multiple linear regression model. Conclusions Our study showes that changes of HR recovery after a 6MWT may be a helpful and easy parameter to assess improvement in exercise capacity after TAVI. This simple method can also help to identify patients in whom no significant benefit in functional improvement can be expected despite successful valve implantation.Demographics