Exercise Training Program
The exercise training sessions were conducted
three times each week, with all 10 treated patients
completing the 36 required sessions in 13 + 1.6 weeks.
The three subjects in the treatment group that were
discontinued for noncompliance completed an average
of 14 sessions in 9 weeks before being discontinued.
All subjects randomized to the treatment group
were able to sustain the exercise prescription. Each
training session was supervised and telemetry monitored.
A session consisted of 5 minutes of warm-up
activities, 50 minutes of intermittent exercise, and
ended with 5 minutes of cool-down activities. Walking
treadmill exercise was initiated at a low treadmill
work load of 2 mph, 0% grade. Subjects walked until
claudication pain became moderately severe, at
which time the subject stepped off the treadmill and
rested until claudication pain subsided. Exercise and
rest periods were repeated throughout each training
session, and the total exercise duration was recorded.
The amount of work performed during exercise was
estimated from the speed and grade of the treadmill
using a standard formula and is reported in metabolic
equivalents (METs). After a patient was able to walk 8-10 minutes at the initial work load, the grade
was increased by 1-2%, or the speed was increased
by 0.5 mph as tolerated. Treated subjects were
instructed to walk for at least 30 minutes twice each week outside the hospital setting.