Monitoring the effects of cardiac rehabilitation programs in heart failure patients: the role of biomarkers

Heart failure (HF) is characterized by poor exercise tolerance and reduced ability to perform routine daily activities. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR), which includes exercise training, has shown a role in improving cardiac remodeling, functional capacity and HF outcomes as a consequence of its beneficial effects on neurohormonal dysfunction, endothelial function, vascular tone and peripheral oxygen extraction. Although a multiparametric evaluation, including physical examination, blood sampling, echocardiographic and cardiopulmonary exercise testing parameters, is routinely performed during CR programs, the use of cardiac biomarkers, in particular natriuretic peptides (NPs), is still poorly adopted and characterized. In this article we analyze the potential role of biomarkers in monitoring the success of rehabilitation programs and the potential implications of their use in clinical practice. Indeed, NPs measurements might represent an important tool to modulate the rehabilitative interventions with a favorable cost-effectiveness profile.