High-intensity Intervals Versus Low-to-moderate-intensity Exercise Training in Patients With PAD

Supervised exercise training (SET) is considered among first-line therapies for patients with symptomatic lower extremity peripheral artery disease (PAD), combined with general cardiovascular risk management, lifestyle adaptation and pharmacological treatment. Although without clear consistency, the guidelines give recommendations in terms of claudication pain severity, SET volume, duration, and frequency. However, no or little guidance is offered as far as training intensity is concerned. Most of the previous studies on SET, in the context of PAD, did not distinguish between symptom intensity and common training intensity measures such as % of maximal heart rate (%HRmax), % of HR reserve (%HRR), % of peak oxygen uptake (%VO2peak), % of VO2 reserve (%VO2R), or the rate of perceived exertion (RPE). In a recent meta-analysis, we demonstrated that both training modality and exercise inten