Exercise for myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury: A systematic review and meta-analysis based on preclinical studies

The main pathological manifestation of coronary artery disease is myocardial injury caused by ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. Regular exercise reduces the risk of death during myocardial IR injury. The aim of this study was to describe the effects of various types of exercise on myocardial IR injury. Four electronic databases PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library were comprehensively searched from inception until February 2022, to identify studies relevant to the current review, using the method of combining subject and free words. Finally, 16 articles were included in the meta-analysis. Results showed that exercise training decreases the Myocardial infarct size compared to the control group (SMD = −2.6, 95 % CI [−3.53 to −1.67], P < 0.01); increasing the coronary blood flow (MD = 2.93, 95 % CI [2.41 to 3.44], P < 0.01), left ventricular developed pressure (SMD = 2.28, 95 % CI [0.12 to 4.43], P < 0.05), cardiac output (SMD = 1.22, 95 % CI [0.61 to 1.83], P < 0.01) compared to the control group. According to the descriptive analysis results also showed that exercise training increases the left ventricular ejection fraction, superoxide dismutase, manganese superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, copper-zinc superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and decrease the creatine kinase, creatine kinase-MB, lactate dehydrogenase, Malondialdehyde, cardiac troponins T. Exercise can improve myocardial function after myocardial IR injury; however, further research is needed in combination with specific issues such as exercise mode, intensity, duration, and model issues.