Heart Problems in Premature Babies May be Cured By Exercise: Study

Heart problems in premature babies may be cured by exercise in young adulthood, a study has found.

A short exercise programme may improve overall cardiac performance and subtle abnormalities in cardiac function in preterm adults. 

(Photo: AP)

A study presented EuroCMR 2019 has found a solution for heart abnormalities that might be suffered by premature babies later on in their lives.

A fourteen-week exercise programme in young adulthood, without the use of any drug, was observed to have normalized the heart’s ‘pumping and contracting functions’.

According to news agency ANI, fourteen participants(eight preterm and 6 controls) from ages 18-29 years, were made to enroll in the exercise programme of aerobic and resistance training thrice a week. Two of these were 90-minute long group sessions and one was a monitored session to be done at home.

Measurements for the heart’s structure and function were taken before and after the programme, and it was observed that these were worse in the pre-term participants before the routine, but almost similar to the controls upon the completion.

ANI quoted study author Elizabeth Hillier as saying,

We found that a short exercise programme may improve overall cardiac performance and subtle abnormalities in cardiac function in preterm adults.

She added, “Advances in neonatal care have enabled premature babies to survive but the abnormal shape and function of the heart are sustained. Exercise in early adulthood corrects these impairments, which should reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.”

Heart abnormalities increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Such a study, therefore, is a massive step in minimizing health problems that premature babies might be more prone to.