A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials on the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with acute heart failure.
FA, Y., YH, H., YL, T., D, H., & HC, C. (2026). A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials on the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with acute heart failure.. PeerJ. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.21352
FA Y, YH H, YL T, D H, HC C. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials on the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with acute heart failure.. PeerJ. 2026; doi: 10.7717/peerj.21352
FA Y, YH H, YL T, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials on the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with acute heart failure.[J]. PeerJ. 2026. DOI: 10.7717/peerj.21352.
@article{fa2026,
author = {Yang FA and Hong YH and Tseng YL and Harnod D and Chen HC},
title = {A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials on the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with acute heart failure.},
journal = {PeerJ},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.7717/peerj.21352},
note = {PMID: 42291415},
}
TY - JOUR AU - Yang FA AU - Hong YH AU - Tseng YL AU - Harnod D AU - Chen HC TI - A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials on the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in patients with acute heart failure. T2 - PeerJ PY - 2026 DO - 10.7717/peerj.21352 AN - PMID:42291415 ER -
BACKGROUND: Acute heart failure often leads to impaired physical function, high rehospitalization rates, and poor quality of life. Although exercise-based rehabilitation benefits chronic heart failure patients, its feasibility in acute heart failure is limited. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation offers a potential alternative by safely inducing muscle contractions without causing dyspnea. METHODS: The protocol was registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (registration number CRD42023453116). Following PRISMA guidelines, a comprehensive search of PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Embase was conducted up to October 13, 2025. Randomized controlled trials comparing neuromuscular electrical stimulation to control treatments in patients with acute heart failure were included. Data synthesis was performed using Review Manager 5.4. RESULTS: Seven randomized controlled trials, with methodological quality ranging from fair to excellent (Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scores 5-9), were included. Pooled data analysis revealed that neuromuscular electrical stimulation significantly improved 6-min walking distance (mean difference = 69.92 m, 95% confidence interval CI [32.17-1 07.68], p = 0.0003), quality of life (standardized mean difference = 1.53, 95% CI [1.03-2.03], p < 0.00001), and showed preliminary evidence of improvement in leg muscle strength (standardized mean difference = 0.77, 95% CI [0.25-1.29], p = 0.004), whereas no significant difference was observed in left ventricular ejection fraction (mean difference = 1.94%, 95% CI [-3.91 to 7.79], p = 0.52). Neuromuscular electrical stimulation was generally well tolerated, with no serious adverse events directly attributable to the intervention. CONCLUSION: Neuromuscular electrical stimulation was noted to be effective for improving physical capacity and quality of life in patients with acute heart failure. It offers a promising option for patients unable to engage in conventional rehabilitation. Further large-scale, multicenter Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) are needed to confirm these findings.