Six-Week Exercise Training and Inflammatory Ratios in Adults with Pulmonary Hypertension and Congenital Heart Disease

Abstract

Inflammation contributes to pulmonary hypertension associated with congenital heart disease. This study evaluated changes in PLR and NLR following six weeks of exercise training in adults with this condition. This single-arm pre–post interventional study enrolled 13 adults with pulmonary hypertension associated with congenital heart disease at Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo General Hospital, Makassar, Indonesia. Participants completed supervised low-intensity exercise training three times weekly for 30 minutes over six weeks. PLR and NLR were measured at baseline and after the intervention. Paired differences were assessed using the Shapiro–Wilk test and compared using two-sided paired t-tests. Mean PLR decreased from 139.75 ± 47.45 at baseline to 122.60 ± 35.59 after training, with a mean paired change of −17.16 ± 43.13 (95% CI, −43.22 to 8.91; p = 0.177). Mean NLR changed from 2.11 ± 0.83 to 2.09 ± 0.99, with a mean paired change of −0.03 ± 1.10 (95% CI, −0.69 to 0.64; p = 0.933). Although PLR decreased numerically, neither outcome showed a statistically significant pre–post change. Six weeks of low-intensity exercise training was not associated with statistically significant changes in PLR or NLR in adults with pulmonary hypertension associated with congenital heart disease.