Feasibility of unsupervised, home-based leg heat therapy in older adults: a pilot, sham-controlled trial.

Heat therapy (HT) using sauna or hot water immersion can improve cardiovascular and physical function, but these approaches are often impractical for older adults. This pilot, randomized, sham-controlled trial evaluated the feasibility of unsupervised, home-based leg HT using water-circulating trousers in sedentary older adults. Twenty-four participants (mean age: 70 ± 3 yr; 15 women) were randomized to HT (42°C) or sham (33°C) for 90 min daily over 12 wk.

Effects of heat therapy on exercise tolerance in a rat model of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) impairs cardiac and skeletal muscle function, reducing exercise tolerance. Few therapies are available to improve physical capacity in HFpEF. We tested the hypothesis that chronic whole body heat therapy (HT) induces central and peripheral adaptations that enhance exercise tolerance in a model of HFpEF.

Neither Peristaltic Pulse Dynamic Compressions nor Heat Therapy Accelerate Glycogen Resynthesis after Intermittent Running.

Purpose: To investigate the effects of a single session of either peristaltic pulse dynamic leg compressions (PPDC) or local heat therapy (HT) after prolonged intermittent shuttle running on skeletal muscle glycogen content, muscle function, and the expression of factors involved in skeletal muscle remodeling.

Methods: Twenty-six trained individuals were randomly allocated to either a PPDC (n = 13) or a HT (n = 13) group. After completing a 90-min session of intermittent shuttle running, participants consumed 0.

Heat therapy improves body composition and muscle function but does not affect capillary or collateral growth in a model of obesity and hindlimb ischemia.

Heat therapy (HT) has emerged as a potential adjunctive therapy to alleviate the symptoms of peripheral artery disease (PAD), but the mechanisms underlying the positive effects of this treatment modality remain undefined. Using a model of diet-induced obesity (DIO) and ischemia-induced muscle damage, we tested the hypothesis that HT would alter body composition, promote vascular growth and mitochondrial biogenesis, and improve skeletal muscle function. Male DIO C57Bl/6J mice underwent bilateral ligation of the femoral artery and were randomly allocated to receive HT or a control intervention for 30 min daily over 3 wk.

Effects of repeated local heat therapy on skeletal muscle structure and function in humans.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of repeated exposure to local heat therapy (HT) on skeletal muscle function, myofiber morphology, capillarization, and mitochondrial content in humans. Twelve young adults (23.6 ± 4.

Heat therapy improves soleus muscle force in a model of ischemia-induced muscle damage.

Leg muscle ischemia in patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) leads to alterations in skeletal muscle morphology and reduced leg strength. We tested the hypothesis that exposure to heat therapy (HT) would improve skeletal muscle function in a mouse model of ischemia-induced muscle damage. Male 42-wk-old C57Bl/6 mice underwent ligation of the femoral artery and were randomly assigned to receive HT (immersion in a water bath at 37°C, 39°C, or 41°C for 30 min) or a control intervention for 3 wk.