IJCS | Volume 32, Nº4, July/August 2019

DOI: 10.5935/2359-4802.20190047 Bruno Bavaresco Gambassi, Professor Universidade CEUMA professorbrunobavaresco@gmail.com 408 International Journal of Cardiovascular Sciences. 2019;32(4):408-413 REVIEW ARTICLE Mailing Address: Bruno Bavaresco Gambassi Universidade Ceuma - Educação Física - Rua Josué Montello, 1. Postal Code: 65075-120, São Luís, MA - Brazil. E-mail: professorbrunobavaresco@gmail.com Effects of Exercise Training on Cardiovascular and Autonomic Parameters in Stroke Survivors: A Systematic Review Bruno Bavaresco Gambassi, 1 Fabiano de Jesus Furtado Almeida, 1 A na Eugênia Araújo Furtado Almeida, 2 João Alberto Ribeiro, 1 T ânia Maria Gaspar Novais, 1 P aulo Adriano Schwingel, 3 Ciro Oliveira Queiroz, 4 Clarcson Plácido Conceição dos Santos, 4 B runo Rodrigues 5 Universidade Ceuma - Educação Física, 1 São Luís, MA - Brazil Universidade Federal do Maranhão, 2 São Luís, MA - Brazil Universidade de Pernambuco (UPE), 3 Petrolina, PE - Brazil Escola Bahiana de Medicina e Saúde Pública (EBMSP), 4 Salvador, BA - Brazil Universidade Estadual de Campinas, 5 Campinas, SP - Brazil Manuscript received on January 18, 2019, revised manuscript on March 14, 2019, accepted on April 21, 2019. Abstract Negative changes in cardiovascular and autonomic variables in stroke survivors have encouraged the global scientific community to focus on investigating therapeutic strategies to mitigate stroke damage. The objective of the present study was to describe the effects of exercise training on cardiovascular and autonomic variables in stroke survivors. We used the PICO (population, intervention, control/comparison, and outcome variables) model for the search of articles in PubMed and Physiotherapy Evidence Databases from 2009 to December 2018. The following data were also recorded: type of study, author, year of publication, participants (time after stroke, sample size, and age) and benefits of exercise training. A total of 544 articles were initially selected, of which nine peer-reviewed articles met the search criteria. These nine studies enrolled 611 participants (middle-aged or elderly), and pointed to positive effects of training on maximal oxygen uptake, peak aerobic capacity, 6-minute walk test and resting heart rate. However, more well-controlled studies are needed to confirm the benefits of exercise training on cardiovascular and autonomic variables in this population. Introduction Stroke can be defined as a neurological loss associated with abnormal vascular perfusion due to a vascular cause. 1 It affected 33 million people worldwide in 2010, of which 16.9 million experienced the first stroke. 2 After stroke, in addition to increased mortality risk due to brain damage, there are impairments in autonomic cardiac control (ACC), 3,4 which are associated with reduced aerobic fitness due to changes in central (reduced central stimulation to the heart) and peripheral (reduction of muscle mass, changes in type II to type I fibers, and reduction of type I fibers) nervous system. 5-8 In this sense, MacKay-Lyons and Makrides 5 observed impaired aerobic capacity (peak VO 2 ) in stroke survivors. Additionally, changes in ACC may indicate health impairment, including changes in blood pressure due to reduction of cardiac baroreflex sensitivity and high risk of cardiac death. 9-14 In addition, Dütsch et al., 15 Keywords Exercise; Physical Fitness; Cardiovascular System; Autonomi c Nervous Sys t em; Phys i otherapy ; Rehabilitation; Stroke; Review.