Purpose:

To analyze the effect of AE versus CT on IL-6 in patients with CAD.

Methodology:

It was developed based on the PRISMA agreements; scientific articles were searched through electronic databases. The search terms (Boolean phrase) were the following: ("coronary artery disease" OR '' cardiac disease '' OR "cardiovascular disease") AND ('' exercise '' OR '' training '' OR "cardiac rehabilitation") AND ("IL-6" OR "Interleukin-6" OR "inflammatory markers") NOT ("animals" OR "rat"). The searches were conducted between August and December 2019.

Results:

A total of 2516 studies were reviewed, of which 10 studies that met the eligibility criteria were included. A total of 413 patients were analyzed. An improvement was found between 5% and 74% with the AE and between 2.3% and 58.8% with the CT. Both modalities significantly decrease IL-6, regardless of age, weekly training sessions, and the initial stage of patients with CAD; however, those studies that used a high intensity or a volume greater than 30 minutes showed greater benefits.

Conclusion:

Both EA and CT are beneficial in reducing IL-6 in patients with CAD. This systematic review leaves the possibility of continuing to investigate the behavior of high intensity in the decrease of IL-6.