Sauna Bathing to Improve Vascular Health of Adults With Heart Disease

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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This study is a clinical trial that will determine if sauna bathing improves blood vessel health in adults aged 50-70 years with heart disease.

Detailed Description
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Mounting evidence suggests that heat therapy may improve cardiovascular health. Recent analyses of a large cohort of middle-aged to older Finnish men have established that frequent sauna bathing is associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular mortality, of developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease, and of developing hypertension. Given the observational nature of these relationships, it remains unknown if the beneficial effects of sauna bathing can be directly attributed to heat exposure. The objective of this study is to test the primary hypothesis that 8 weeks of sauna bathing improves flow-mediated dilation, a measure of blood vessel health, in middle-aged to older adults (50-70 yrs) with stable coronary artery disease.

Official Title
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Effects of Sauna Bathing on Cerebrovascular Function in Middle-aged to Older Adults With Heart Disease

Conditions
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Coronary Artery Disease

Intervention / Treatment
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* Other: Lifestyle intervention


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: A history of angiographic coronary disease: ≥70% arterial diameter narrowing of at least one major epicardial coronary artery and/or prior coronary revascularization and/or documented prior acute coronary syndrome and/or perfusion defect during exercise testing or pharmacological stimulation Stable medication doses (≥4 weeks) prior to enrolment Body mass index <35 kg/m2 Exclusion Criteria: Recent (<3 months) coronary artery disease-related hospitalization or change in angina pattern Unstable angina Ejection fraction <40% and/or clinical evidence of heart failure Significant valvular heart disease Uncontrolled hypertension (>180/110 mmHg)

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 50 Years
Maximum Age: 70 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Prevention
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| No Intervention: Control<br>Participants randomized to the control condition will be asked to maintain their normal daily habits. | |
| Experimental: Sauna<br>The sauna intervention will consist of 20 to 30 minute sauna bathing sessions within a dry Finnish sauna, performed 4 times per week. | Other: Lifestyle intervention<br>* Sauna bathing<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Flow-mediated dilation | Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation in response to 5 minutes of forearm occlusion | Change from baseline after 8 weeks | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Post-occlusion reactive hyperaemia (AUC) | Vascular conductance area-under-the-curve during reactive hyperaemia induced by 5 minutes of forearm occlusion | Change from baseline after 8 weeks | 
| Post-occlusion reactive hyperaemia (Peak) | Peak vascular conductance during reactive hyperaemia induced by 5 minutes of forearm occlusion | Change from baseline after 8 weeks | 
| Local skin heating-induced vasodilation | Plateau of the cutaneous vascular conductance response during local heating of the skin to 39°C | Change from baseline after 8 weeks | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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flow-mediated dilation, sauna, vascular, heat