PHA Host Webinar on Exercising Mindfully with PH on August 28th

The Pulmonary Hypertension Association (PHA) is hosting a webinar about the health value of exercise for pulmonary hypertension patients. The event, called “Exercising Mindfully with PH,” will take place Thursday, August 28 at the PHA head office, and will be presented by Rana Lee Adawi Awdish, MD, a PH specialist and practicing physician at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit.

“While research has shown that exercise can be beneficial for a PH patient, sometimes finding the right exercise program can be very difficult,” said the PHA in an announcement on their website. “Join Dr. Rana Awdish of the Henry Ford Health System to learn how to choose the best program for you. Dr. Awdish will discuss considerations for embarking on an exercise routine, safety considerations in yoga, and how to supplement your exercise practice with mindfulness meditation for stress relief.”

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Being triple board-certified in Internal Medicine, Pulmonary, and Critical Care Medicine, Dr. Rana Awdish has been investigating the health gains of practicing yoga, and esspecially core strength vinyasa yoga for patients, since 2002. Awdish, who will dedicate an hour to the topic, received her training at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Manhattan, attended Wayne State University Medical School, and completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

The physician is also the creator of the Yoga for PH exercise program, a first-of-its-kind 40-minute program developed at Henry Ford Hospital to improve balance, strength, reduce stress and calm the nervous system of patients. Available for free download on iTunes and Google Play, it includes three levels of yoga exercises adapted to fulfill the patients’ needs and a nutrition and lifestyle guide and it is the result of the patients’ requests.

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The physical capacities of PH patients have been widely studied by researchers, in an effort to understand their limitations. A recent study concluded that there is a connection between cardiovascular reserve anomalies and an impaired hemodynamics response to pharmacological stress and negative outcomes in patients with PAH that cause that incapacity. In addition, a different study revealed that it is possible to understand a patient’s chances of survival by measuring his or her pulmonary arterial hypertension for heart performance parameters during exercise shortly after diagnosis.

To attend the “Exercising Mindfully with PH” webinar, registration is required, and can be completed online at the website of the PHA here.