著者
Michikazu Nakai Yoshitaka Iwanaga Yoko Sumita Tetsuya Amano Ikuo Fukuda Tomoyasu Hirano Mami Iida Kota Katanoda Yoshihiro Miyamoto Masakazu Nakamura Keijiro Saku Takahiro Tabuchi Hiroshi Yamato Bo Zhang Hisayoshi Fujiwara
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CJ-23-0191, (Released:2023-08-22)
参考文献数
19
被引用文献数
1

Background: Hyogo Prefecture has managed smoking ban legislation with partial restrictions in public places (Hyogo-L) since 2013. Previous studies have reported a significant decrease in admissions for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in Kobe-city, but not in other districts of Hyogo Prefecture in the 2 years after Hyogo-L. The aim of the present study was to define the long-term effect of Hyogo-L.Methods and Results: The JROAD-DPC dataset was used to collect information on the number of hospitalizations for ACS in Hyogo Prefecture, and in Osaka-city without smoking ban legislation, from April 2013 to March 2020. Poisson regression analysis was performed to calculate incident rate ratios (IRRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). ACS records of 3,101 in Kobe-city, 11,375 in areas of Hyogo Prefecture other than Kobe-city and 11,079 in Osaka-city were collected for admissions. The incidence of ACS reduced significantly over time in Kobe-city [IRR (95% CI); 0.96 (0.94–0.97)], but did not reduce in the others. The decrease in Kobe-city was observed in ACS patients without smoking, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia, but not in those with such risk factors.Conclusions: The long-term ACS reduction or non-reduction under Hyogo-L was determined at the initial period and the same scenario continued, supporting the importance of legislation and compliance with the smoking ban. The lowering effect was remarkable in ACS patients without risk factors such as non-smoking.
著者
Jumpei Yamamoto Masao Moroi Hiromasa Hayama Masaya Yamamoto Hisao Hara Yukio Hiroi
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CJ-23-0238, (Released:2023-07-11)
参考文献数
40

Background: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and heart failure (HF) have elevated left ventricular end-diastolic pressure in addition to decreased left atrial (LA) function, but there are few reports of useful prognostic indices that can be seen on echocardiography. In this study, we investigated the association between LA reservoir strain (LARS) and prognosis in this group of patients.Methods and Results: We retrospectively enrolled patients with acute HF complicated by AF who were consecutively admitted to hospital between January 2014 and December 2018. A total of 320 patients (mean age 79±12 years, 163 women) were included in the analysis. During a median follow-up of 473 days, 92 cardiovascular deaths and 113 all-cause deaths occurred. In the multivariate analysis, LARS was an independent predictor of all-cause death (hazard ratio [HR] 0.94, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.90–0.99, P=0.016). Multivariate analysis also showed that the patients in the lowest LARS tertile (<7.16%) had a significantly increased risk of cardiovascular death (HR 1.76, 95% CI 1.05–2.96; P=0.033) and all-cause death (HR 1.90, 95% CI 1.17–3.08; P=0.009) in comparison with patients in the highest LARS tertile (>10.52%).Conclusions: We found a significant association between LARS and death in patients with AF and HF. Patients with reduced LARS had poor prognosis, suggesting the need for aggressive therapy to improve their LA dysfunction.
著者
Tatsuya Mizoguchi Tomonori Sugiura Yu Kawada Junki Yamamoto Masashi Yokoi Kosuke Nakasuka Kento Mori Shohei Kikuchi Tsuyoshi Ito Shuichi Kitada Toshihiko Goto Yoshihiro Seo
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CJ-22-0772, (Released:2023-03-21)
参考文献数
46

Background: The number of patients with heart failure (HF) has increased, and it is crucial to prevent the development of HF in patients at risk of HF. The present study aimed to risk stratify patients in Stage A and B HF based on associations between exercise-induced changes in aortic stiffness and exercise tolerance.Methods and Results: Patients in Stage A and B HF who performed a cardiopulmonary exercise test were enrolled in the study (n=106; median age 65.0 years [interquartile range 52.8–73.0 years]). Exercise tolerance was examined by the percentage of predicted peak oxygen consumption (%V̇O2peak). The ascending aortic pressure waveform was estimated non-invasively. Aortic stiffness was assessed using the augmentation index (AIx) and reflection magnitude (RM). Multivariable regression analysis showed that AIx measured both before and after exercise was significantly associated with %V̇O2peak (β=−0.221 [P=0.049] and β=−0.342 [P=0.003], respectively). When participants were divided into %V̇O2peak subgroups using a cut-off value of 60%, RM decreased immediately after exercise and remained lower 5 min after exercise in the group with preserved exercise tolerance, but recovered to baseline levels 5 min after exercise in the group with reduced exercise tolerance.Conclusions: Exercise-induced increases in aortic stiffness were associated with exercise tolerance in patients at risk of HF, suggesting that exercise-induced changes in aortic stiffness may be useful to stratify high-risk patients.
著者
Shintaro Togashi Tsuyoshi Isawa Taku Honda Kenichi Furuya Kazuhiro Yamaya Masataka Taguri Shigeru Toyoda
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CJ-23-0103, (Released:2023-05-16)
参考文献数
28

Background: Because the penetration of transvenous lead extraction (TLE) for cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) infection has not been investigated in Japan, we conducted a population-based, retrospective, descriptive study to evaluate regional disparities in the use of TLE for CIED infection and the potential undertreatment of CIED infection using a nationwide insurance claims database.Methods and Results: Patients who underwent CIED implantation or generator exchange and TLE between April 2018 and March 2020 were identified. Moreover, the penetration ratio of TLE for CIED infection in each prefecture was estimated. CIED implantation and TLE were most prevalent in the age categories of 80–89 years (40.3%) and 80–89 years (36.9%), respectively. There was no correlation between the number of CIED implantations and that of TLE (rho=−0.087, 95% confidence interval −0.374 to 0.211, P=0.56). The median penetration ratio was 0.00 (interquartile range 0.00–1.29). Of the 47 prefectures, 6, comprising Okinawa, Miyagi, Okayama, Fukuoka, Tokyo, and Osaka, showed a penetration ratio ≥2.00.Conclusions: Our study data indicated great regional disparities in the penetration of TLE and potential undertreatment of CIED infection in Japan. Additional measures are needed to address these issues.
著者
Hiroyuki Omori Yoshiaki Kawase Takuya Mizukami Toru Tanigaki Tetsuo Hirata Munenori Okubo Hiroki Kamiya Akihiro Hirakawa Masanori Kawasaki Takeshi Kondo Takahiko Suzuki Hitoshi Matsuo
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CJ-22-0771, (Released:2023-03-28)
参考文献数
22
被引用文献数
2

Background: Angiographic fractional flow reserve (angioFFR) is a novel artificial intelligence (AI)-based angiography-derived fractional flow reserve (FFR) application. We investigated the diagnostic accuracy of angioFFR to detect hemodynamically relevant coronary artery disease.Methods and Results: Consecutive patients with 30–90% angiographic stenoses and invasive FFR measurements were included in this prospective, single-center study conducted between November 2018 and February 2020. Diagnostic accuracy was assessed using invasive FFR as the reference standard. In patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention, gradients of invasive FFR and angioFFR in the pre-senting segments were compared. We assessed 253 vessels (200 patients). The accuracy of angioFFR was 87.7% (95% confidence interval [CI] 83.1–91.5%), with a sensitivity of 76.8% (95% CI 67.1–84.9%), specificity of 94.3% (95% CI 89.5–97.4%), and area under the curve of 0.90 (95% CI 0.86–0.93%). AngioFFR was well correlated with invasive FFR (r=0.76; 95% CI 0.71–0.81; P<0.001). The agreement was 0.003 (limits of agreement: −0.13, 0.14). The FFR gradients of angioFFR and invasive FFR were comparable (n=51; mean [±SD] 0.22±0.10 vs. 0.22±0.11, respectively; P=0.87).Conclusions: AI-based angioFFR showed good diagnostic accuracy for detecting hemodynamically relevant stenosis using invasive FFR as the reference standard. The gradients of invasive FFR and angioFFR in the pre-stenting segments were comparable.
著者
Koshiro Kanaoka Yoshitaka Iwanaga Katsuki Okada Satoshi Terasaki Yuichi Nishioka Michikazu Nakai Daisuke Kamon Tomoya Myojin Tsunenari Soeda Tatsuya Noda Manabu Horii Yasushi Sakata Yoshihiro Miyamoto Yoshihiko Saito Tomoaki Imamura
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.87, no.4, pp.536-542, 2023-03-24 (Released:2023-03-24)
参考文献数
22
被引用文献数
6

Background: We aimed to validate a claims-based diagnostic algorithm to identify hospitalized patients with acute major cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) from health insurance claims in Japan.Methods and Results: This retrospective multicenter validation study was conducted at 4 institutes, including Japanese Circulation Society-certified and uncertified hospitals in Japan. Data on patients with CVDs in departmental lists or with International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes for CVDs hospitalized between April 2018 and March 2019 were extracted. We examined the sensitivity and positive predictive value of a diagnostic algorithm using ICD-10 codes, medical examinations, and treatments for acute coronary syndrome (ACS), acute heart failure (HF), and acute aortic disease (AAD). We identified 409 patients with ACS (mean age 70.6 years; 24.7% female), 615 patients with acute HF (mean age 77.3 years; 46.2% female), and 122 patients with AAD (mean age 73.4 years; 36.1% female). The respective sensitivity and positive predictive value for the algorithm were 0.86 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.82–0.89) and 0.95 (95% CI 0.92–0.97) for ACS; 0.74 (95% CI 0.70–0.77) and 0.79 (95% CI 0.76–0.83) for acute HF; and 0.86 (95% CI 0.79–0.92) and 0.83 (95% CI 0.76–0.89) for AAD.Conclusions: The validity of the diagnostic algorithm for Japanese claims data was acceptable. Our results serve as a foundation for future studies on CVDs using nationwide administrative data.
著者
Yuta Tauchi Tomoyuki Ogino Tomoyuki Morisawa Yosuke Wada Rie Sakamoto Yoshihiro Kanata Kazuhisa Domen
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Reports (ISSN:24340790)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CR-22-0102, (Released:2023-03-11)
参考文献数
29

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the actual conditions of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) for elderly patients with heart failure (HF) in outpatient rehabilitation (OR) facilities using long-term care insurance systems.Methods and Results: This was a cross-sectional web-based questionnaire survey conducted at 1,258 facilities in the Kansai region (6 prefectures) of Japan from October to December 2021. In all, 184 facilities responded to the web-based questionnaire (response rate 14.8%). Of these facilities, 159 (86.4%) accepted patients with HF. Among the patients with HF, 94.3% were aged ≥75 years and 66.7% were classified as New York Heart Association functional class I/II. Facilities treating patients with HF generally provided exercise therapy, patient education, and disease management, which were components of CR. Many facilities not currently treating patients with HF responded positively stating they will accept HF patients in the future. However, a few facilities responded by stating that they are waiting for clearer evidence demonstrating the beneficial effect of OR on patients with HF.Conclusions: The present results show the possibility that outpatient CR can be performed for elderly patients with HF in other than medical insurance.
著者
Satoshi Katano Toshiyuki Yano Takanori Tsukada Hidemichi Kouzu Suguru Honma Takuya Inoue Yuhei Takamura Ryohei Nagaoka Tomoyuki Ishigo Ayako Watanabe Katsuhiko Ohori Masayuki Koyama Nobutaka Nagano Takefumi Fujito Ryo Nishikawa Hiroyuki Takashima Akiyoshi Hashimoto Masaki Katayose Tetsuji Miura
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.84, no.12, pp.2224-2234, 2020-11-25 (Released:2020-11-25)
参考文献数
37
被引用文献数
5 15

Background:The clinical significance of osteoporosis in chronic heart failure (CHF) remains unclear.Methods and Results:A total of 303 CHF patients (75 years, [interquartile range (IQR) 66–82 years]; 41% female) were retrospectively examined. Bone mineral densities (BMDs) at the lumbar spine, femoral neck, and total femur were measured by using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), and osteoporosis was diagnosed when the BMD at any of the 3 sites was <70% of the Young Adult Mean percentage (%YAM). The prevalence of osteoporosis in CHF patients was 40%. Patients with osteoporosis were older (79 [IQR, 74–86] vs. 72 [IQR, 62–80] years), included a large percentage of females, had slower gait speed and had a lower body mass index. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that sex, BMI, gait speed, loop diuretics use and no use of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) were independently associated with osteoporosis. Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that the rate of death and heart failure hospitalization was higher in patients with osteoporotic BMD at 2 or 3 sites than in patients without osteoporosis (hazard ratio 3.45, P<0.01). In multivariate Cox regression analyses, osteoporotic BMD at 2 or 3 sites was an independent predictor of adverse events after adjustment for prognostic markers.Conclusions:Loop diuretics use and no DOACs use are independently associated with osteoporosis in CHF patients. Osteoporosis is a novel predictor of worse outcome in patients with CHF.
著者
Satoshi Kodera Hiroyuki Morita Hiroshi Nishi Norifumi Takeda Jiro Ando Issei Komuro
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.86, no.12, pp.2021-2028, 2022-11-25 (Released:2022-11-25)
参考文献数
43
被引用文献数
3

Background: The cost-effectiveness of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors for chronic kidney disease (CKD) has not been evaluated in Japan, so we analyzed the cost-effectiveness of dapagliflozin, an SGLT2 inhibitor, for CKD stages 3a and 3b.Methods and Results: We used the Markov model for CKD to assess the costs and benefits associated with and without dapagliflozin from a health system perspective. We estimated the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER), expressed as per quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). An ICER <5 million Japanese yen (JPY)/QALY was judged to be cost-effective. The effect of dapagliflozin on renal and cardiovascular events was based on published clinical trials. In patients with CKD stage 3a, the ICER of dapagliflozin over standard treatment was 4.03 million JPY/QALY gained. With a cost-effectiveness threshold of 5 million JPY/QALY gained, the cost-effectiveness probability of dapagliflozin over standard treatment was 52.6%. In patients with CKD stage 3b, the ICER of dapagliflozin over standard treatment was 0.12 million JPY/QALY gained. The cost-effectiveness probability of dapagliflozin over standard treatment was 75.2%.Conclusions: The results seemed to show acceptable cost-effectiveness when dapagliflozin was used for CKD stage 3b. On the other hand, cost-effectiveness of dapagliflozin for CKD stage 3a was ambiguous, and further validation is needed.
著者
Hirofumi Ohashi Tomoaki Nawano Hiroaki Takashima Hirohiko Ando Reiji Goto Akihiro Suzuki Shinichiro Sakurai Wataru Suzuki Yusuke Nakano Hiroaki Sawada Masanobu Fujimoto Koshiro Sakai Yasushi Suzuki Katsuhisa Waseda Tetsuya Amano
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Reports (ISSN:24340790)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.4, no.9, pp.439-446, 2022-09-09 (Released:2022-09-09)
参考文献数
27

Background: Physiological assessments using fractional flow reserve (FFR) and resting full-cycle ratio (RFR) have been recommended for revascularization decision making. Previous studies have shown a 20% rate of discordance between FFR and RFR. In this context, the correlation between RFR and FFR in patients with renal dysfunction remains unclear. This study examined correlations between RFR and FFR according to renal function.Methods and Results: In all, 263 consecutive patients with 370 intermediate lesions were enrolled in the study. Patients were classified into 3 groups according to renal function: Group 1, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥60 mL/min/1.73 m2; Group 2, 30 mL/min/1.73 m2≤eGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m2; Group 3, eGFR <30 mL/min/1.73 m2. The discordance between FFR and RFR was assessed using known cut-off values for FFR (≤0.80) and RFR (≤0.89). Of the 370 lesions, functional significance with FFR was observed in 154 (41.6%). RFR was significantly correlated with FFR in all groups (Group 1, R2=0.62 [P<0.001]; Group 2, R2=0.67 [P<0.001]; Group 3, R2=0.46 [P<0.001]). The rate of discordance between RFR and FFR differed significantly among the 3 groups (Group 1, 18.8%; Group 2, 18.5%; Group 3, 42.9%; P=0.02).Conclusions: The diagnostic performance of RFR differed based on renal function. A better understanding of the clinical factors contributing to FFR/RFR discordance, such as renal function, may facilitate the use of these indices.
著者
Yuichi Ozaki Hector M. Garcia-Garcia Solomon S. Beyene Alexandre Hideo-Kajita Kayode O. Kuku Paul Kolm Ron Waksman
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.83, no.7, pp.1480-1488, 2019-06-25 (Released:2019-06-25)
参考文献数
25
被引用文献数
16 22

Background:Statin therapy has been shown to result in coronary plaque regression, but the relationship between statin use and stabilization of coronary plaque has not been elucidated. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effect of statin therapy on fibrous cap thickness (FCT) on optical coherence tomography (OCT).Methods and Results:Nine OCT studies (6 randomized controlled trials and 3 observational studies) were enrolled with a total of 341 patients (390 lesions). Arms of the studies were grouped according to statin type and/or dose. Random effects meta-analysis was used to estimate a pooled mean change in FCT from baseline to follow-up. The overall effect mean FCT change was 67.7 µm (95% CI: 51.4–84.1, I2=95.0%, P<0.001). All statin groups had an increase in FCT, but the magnitude of the increase differed according to the statin. Two homogeneous subgroups with I2=0 were identified: mean FCT change was 27.8 µm (for subgroup atorvastatin 5 mg and rosuvastatin), and 61.9 µm (for subgroup atorvastatin 20 mg, fluvastatin 30 mg, and pitavastatin 4 mg). On meta-regression modeling, statin therapy alone explained most of the change in FCT.Conclusions:Statin therapy induced a significant increase in FCT as assessed on OCT, independent of coronary risk factors and other medications.
著者
Yuki Katagiri Kazumasa Yamasaki Noriyuki Hatanaka Hiroki Bota Tomoyuki Tani Tomonori Koga Yuki Setogawa Manabu Misawa Takashi Ueda Seiji Yamazaki
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Reports (ISSN:24340790)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.4, no.6, pp.274-284, 2022-06-10 (Released:2022-06-10)
参考文献数
28
被引用文献数
2

Background: In patients with aortic stenosis (AS), measurement of aortic valve calcification (AVC) using computed tomography (CT) is recommended in cases where echocardiographic measurements are inconclusive. However, sex-specific AVC thresholds proposed in the guidelines for predicting severe AS (women: 1,200 arbitrary units [AU]; men: 2,000 AU) are based on studies from Western countries.Methods and Results: We retrospectively included 512 Japanese patients with at least moderate AS who underwent transthoracic echocardiography and CT. AVC was quantified using the Agatston method. AVC was positively correlated with peak aortic jet velocity and mean transvalvular gradient (mPG), and negatively correlated with aortic valve area (AVA) and the AVA index (AVAi). In 257 patients with concordant AS grading (152 severe AS [AVAi ≤0.6 cm2/m2, mPG ≥40 mmHg], 105 moderate AS [AVAi >0.6 cm2/m2, mPG <40 mmHg]), receiver operating characteristic curve analysis of AVC predicting severe AS yielded an area under the curve of 0.91 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.87–0.95; P<0.001) in women and 0.86 (95% CI 0.75–0.98; P<0.001) in men. The optimal thresholds (women: 1,379 AU; men: 1,802 AU) were close to those proposed in the guidelines. The diagnostic accuracy of the thresholds in the guidelines was similar to that of the optimal thresholds.Conclusions: The sex-specific AVC thresholds proposed in international guidelines can be applied to Japanese AS patients, yielding similar diagnostic accuracy as the optimal cut-off derived from the study patients.
著者
Yohei Okada Sho Komukai Tetsuhisa Kitamura Takeyuki Kiguchi Taro Irisawa Tomoki Yamada Kazuhisa Yoshiya Changhwi Park Tetsuro Nishimura Takuya Ishibe Yoshiki Yagi Masafumi Kishimoto Toshiya Inoue Yasuyuki Hayashi Taku Sogabe Takaya Morooka Haruko Sakamoto Keitaro Suzuki Fumiko Nakamura Tasuku Matsuyama Norihiro Nishioka Daisuke Kobayashi Satoshi Matsui Atsushi Hirayama Satoshi Yoshimura Shunsuke Kimata Takeshi Shimazu Shigeru Ohtsuru Taku Iwami
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.CJ-21-0675, (Released:2021-11-02)
参考文献数
52
被引用文献数
10

Background:The hypothesis of this study is that latent class analysis could identify the subphenotypes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients associated with the outcomes and allow us to explore heterogeneity in the effects of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR).Methods and Results:This study was a retrospective analysis of a multicenter prospective observational study (CRITICAL study) of OHCA patients. It included adult OHCA patients with initial shockable rhythm. Patients from 2012 to 2016 (development dataset) were included in the latent class analysis, and those from 2017 (validation dataset) were included for evaluation. The association between subphenotypes and outcomes was investigated. Further, the heterogeneity of the association between ECPR implementation and outcomes was explored. In the study results, a total of 920 patients were included for latent class analysis. Three subphenotypes (Groups 1, 2, and 3) were identified, mainly characterized by the distribution of partial pressure of O2(PO2), partial pressure of CO2(PCO2) value of blood gas assessment, cardiac rhythm on hospital arrival, and estimated glomerular filtration rate. The 30-day survival outcomes were varied across the groups: 15.7% in Group 1; 30.7% in Group 2; and 85.9% in Group 3. Further, the association between ECPR and 30-day survival outcomes by subphenotype groups in the development dataset was as varied. These results were validated using the validation dataset.Conclusions:The latent class analysis identified 3 subphenotypes with different survival outcomes and potential heterogeneity in the effects of ECPR.
著者
Hidenori Kato Hiroki Watanabe Akira Koike Longmei Wu Kosuke Hayashi Hirotomo Konno Takeshi Machino Isao Nishi Akira Sato Hiroaki Kawamoto Kazutaka Aonuma Yoshiyuki Sankai Masaki Ieda
出版者
The Japanese Circulation Society
雑誌
Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.86, no.1, pp.60-67, 2021-12-24 (Released:2021-12-24)
参考文献数
29
被引用文献数
1 5

Background:Aiming to establish an effective tool in new cardiac rehabilitation programs, we investigated the use of a lumbar-type hybrid assistive limb (HAL) in patients with heart failure (HF) who had difficulty in walking at the usual speed of healthy subjects (≈80 m/min).Methods and Results:We randomly assigned 28 HF patients (age, 73.1±13.8 years) to perform a sit-to-stand exercise with or without HAL. The sit-to-stand exercise was repeated as many times as possible as cardiac rehabilitation therapy over a period of 6–10 days. We measured 5 parameters before and after the completion of cardiac rehabilitation: B-type natriuretic peptide, Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), 6-min walking distance (6MWD), 30-s chair-stand test (CS-30), and isometric knee extensor muscle strength. The SPPB and 6MWD were significantly improved, and the CS-30 score was somewhat improved, after the exercise therapy in both the HAL and non-HAL groups. The knee extensor muscle strength improved significantly in the HAL group (0.29±0.11 to 0.35±0.11 kgf/kg, P<0.01), but showed no change in the non-HAL group (0.35±0.11 to 0.35±0.13 kgf/kg, P=0.40).Conclusions:The improved knee extensor muscle strength in the HAL group suggests that the lumbar-type HAL may be an effective tool for cardiac rehabilitation in HF patients with frailty, which is a predictor of poor prognosis in HF.