Smartphone-Assisted High-Intensity Interval Training in Inflammatory Rheumatic Disease Patients: Randomized Controlled Trial

Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs) experience disease-related barriers to physical training. Compared with the general population, IRD patients are reported to have reduced maximal oxygen uptake (VO ) and physical activity levels. Supervised high-intensity interval training (HIIT) is documented to counteract the reduced VO and poor cardiovascular health associated with IRDs. However, supervised HIIT is resource demanding. This study sought to investigate if self-administered 4×4-min HIIT guided by a smartphone app (Myworkout GO) could yield similar HIIT-induced effects as standard 4×4-min HIIT performed under the guidance and supervision of health care professionals. The effects studied were on VO and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Forty patients (33 female patients, mean age 48 years, SD 12 years; 7 male patients, mean age 52 years, SD 11 years) diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis, or systemic lupus erythematosus were randomized to a supervised group (SG) or an app group (AG). Both groups were instructed to perform 4×4-min intervals with a rate of perceived exertion of 16 to 17, corresponding to 85% to 95% of the maximal heart rate, twice a week for 10 weeks. Treadmill VO and HRQoL measured using RAND-36 were assessed before and after the exercise period. VO increased (P