Acupuncture Helps Exercise Tolerance in Heart Failure Patients

As reported on the webpage physorg.com, a recent medical journal report found that 

"Acupuncture can improve exercise tolerance in patients suffering from chronic heart failure. This was determined in a clinical pilot study by the team headed by Dr. Johannes Backs, physician and study director at the Department of Internal Medicine III of Heidelberg University Hospital, Germany. The needles do not increase the heart's pump function, but they seem to have an influence on skeletal muscle strength and thus can increase the walk distance that heart patients can cover. The results of the clinical study, which was conducted with a comparison group treated with placebo acupuncture using dull needles, have been published in the prestigious medical journal Heart."

This is  borne out by my own experience working with people who have experienced heart failure as well as with athletes who are using acupuncture to increase their endurance for triathalons, marathons and the like.