Pressure maneuvers can prevent fainting
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Counterpressure maneuvers can help prevent episodes of vasovagal syncope, a common type of fainting triggered by a sudden drop in blood pressure, European investigators report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
In fact, these exercises work so well that the team, led by Dr. Nynke van Dijk from the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam, recommends the exercises "in combination with current conventional therapy as first-line treatment in patients" with vasovagal syncope.
Although many treatments have been suggested for vasovagal syncope, none are based on solid research, the investigators note. The results of some laboratory studies showed that muscle tensing could control or abort impending fainting spells, but these studies did not include many patients.
Van Dijk's team undertook a trial to see if physical counterpressure maneuvers could reduce the frequency of fainting episodes "in real life." All 223 patients in the study had fainting episodes that were preceded by warning signs that fainting was about to occur.
One hundred seventeen patients were randomly assigned to conventional therapy alone. This consisted of explanation of the mechanisms causing vasovagal syncope and advice regarding lifestyle modification, such as avoiding triggers or lying down when they experience early symptoms, and increasing fluid and salt intake.
The 106 patients randomly assigned to the physical counterpressure maneuver group received the conventional therapy, and were also trained in counterpressure maneuvers. Options for patients in the second group were to cross their legs and tense their leg, abdominal and buttock muscles; handgrip, which consisted of maximal voluntary squeezing of a rubber ball; and arm tensing, by gripping one hand with the other and trying to pull them apart by contracting their muscles. Training included biofeedback with continuous blood pressure monitoring.
The average follow-up period was 14 months. During that time, 73.6 percent of patients in the conventional arm and 82.7 percent in the counterpressure maneuver group experienced symptoms indicating that a fainting spell was about to occur.
However, the rate of actual fainting was much lower in the physical counterpressure maneuver group: 31.6 versus 50.9 percent, respectively.
The researchers conclude that physical counterpressure maneuvering is a risk-free, effective and low-cost treatment for vasovagal syncope with early warning signs.
SOURCE: Journal of the American College of Cardiology, October 17, 2006.
Source: www.checkfreshnews.com
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