Exercise showdown: HIIT vs. moderate workouts for AFib patients
NCT ID NCT03397602
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study compares two types of supervised exercise programs—high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and moderate-intensity continuous exercise—against standard care alone in 132 adults with persistent or permanent atrial fibrillation. Participants will exercise twice weekly for 12 weeks. The goal is to see which approach better improves exercise capacity and quality of life.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- exercise training (moderate-intensity continuous or high-intensity interval)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a simple, drug-free way to improve fitness and daily well-being for people with atrial fibrillation.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small, early-stage trial (132 participants) comparing two exercise programs. Results may not apply to all AF patients, and exercise benefits can vary widely.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 132 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jan 2019
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2037
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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40 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. persistent or permanent atrial fibrillation; 2. rate controlled with a resting ventricular rate of equal to or less than 100 bpm; 3. able to perform a symptom-limited exercise test; 4. at least 40 years of age (i.e. participants must be 40 years or older); Exclusion Criteria: 1. currently participating in routine exercise training (more than two times per week); 2. unstable angina; 3. diagnosed severe mitral or aortic stenosis; 4. diagnosed hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy with significant obstruction; 5. pregnant, lactating or planning to become pregnant during the study period; 6. unable to provide written, informed consent, or 7. unwilling or unable to return for follow up at week 12.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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London Health Sciences Network
RECRUITINGLondon, Ontario, Canada
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University of Ottawa Heart Insititue
RECRUITINGOttawa, Ontario, K1Y 4W7, Canada
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