Effects of enhanced external counterpulsation on exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with chronic heart failure A meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: This meta-analysis aimed to synthesize randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effects of enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) on exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). Methods: Both English and Chinese databases were searched from their inception to June 30, 2020 (PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL (EBSCO), Web of Science for English publications and Chinese Biomedical Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Data for Chinese publication). Titles, abstracts, and full-text articles were screened against study inclusion criteria: randomized controlled trials studying EECP intervention for patients with CHF. The meta-analysis was conducted with Revman 5.3 or STATA 16.0. Results: Eight randomized controlled trials were included. EECP induced significant improvement in 6-min walking distance (WMD=84.79m; 95% CI, 47.64 to 121.95; P