Determinants of exercise capacity in patients with coronary artery disease and mild to moderate systolic dysfunction. Role of heart rate and diastolic filling abnormalities

To test the hypothesis that diastolic filling abnormalities are an important cause of exercise limitation in some patients with coronary artery disease we assessed the factors limiting exercise capacity in a group of patients with coronary artery disease in whom exercise limitation was greater than expected from the degree of resting left ventricular systolic dysfunction.