Nevertheless , there was " low-level " evidence that HEPs can improve walking capacity and quality of life in patients with intermittent claudication when compared with baseline or in comparison to usual care/observation control .
In addition , improvements with  HEPs  may be inferior to those evoked by supervised exercise training .
We aim ed to conduct a systematic review of the evidence for structured , home-based exercise programmes ( HEPs ) in patients with intermittent claudication .
Limb-specific and cross-transfer effects of arm-crank exercise training in patients with symptomatic peripheral arterial disease.
Arm cranking is a useful alternative exercise modality for improving walking performance in patients with intermittent claudication ; however , the mechanisms of such an improvement are poorly understood . The main aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of arm-crank exercise training on lower-limb O2 delivery in patients with intermittent claudication . A total of 57 patients with intermittent claudication ( age , 70+/-8 years ; mean+/-S.D. ) were r and omized to an arm-crank exercise group or a non-exercise control group . The exercise group trained twice weekly for 12 weeks . At baseline and 12 weeks , patients completed incremental tests to maximum exercise tolerance on both an arm-crank ergometer and a treadmill .  Respiratory variables were measured breath-by-breath to determine peak VO2 ( O2 uptake ) and ventilatory threshold . Near-IR spectroscopy was used in the treadmill test to determine changes in calf muscle StO2 ( tissue O2 saturation ) . Patients also completed a square-wave treadmill-walking protocol to determine VO2 kinetics . A total of 51 patients completed the study . In the exercise group , higher maximum walking distances ( from 496+/-250 to 661+/-324 m ) and peak VO2 values ( from 17.2+/-2.7 to 18.2+/-3.4 ml.kg-1 of body mass.min-1 ) were recorded in the incremental treadmill test ( P<0.05 ) . After training , there was also an increase in time to minimum StO2 ( from 268+/-305 s to 410+/-366 s ) , a speeding of VO2 kinetics ( from 44.7+/-10.4 to 41.3+/-14.4 s ) and an increase in submaximal StO2 during treadmill walking ( P<0.05 ) . There were no significant changes in the control group . The results suggest that the improvement in walking performance after arm-crank exercise training in patients with intermittent claudication is attributable , at least in part , to improved lower-limb O2 delivery
Nevertheless , there was " low-level " evidence that HEPs can improve walking capacity and quality of life in patients with intermittent claudication when compared with baseline or in comparison to usual care/observation control .
In addition , improvements with  HEPs  may be inferior to those evoked by supervised exercise training .
We aim ed to conduct a systematic review of the evidence for structured , home-based exercise programmes ( HEPs ) in patients with intermittent claudication .