Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is known to affect the functions of other organs as well and autonomic dysfunction of the heart is one such common issue associated with the disease. However, a new study proves that regular physical activity or excercise reduces heart damage in COPD patients. A Spanish study, published in the journal Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, by a team of scientists led by Laura Delgado, a predoctoral researcher at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and her team found that heart dysfunction is reduced in COPD patients who engage in regular intense physical exercise. The researchers said that the results add an important dimension to earlier findings of how the heart’s ability to regulate the rhythm during physical exercise is impaired in COPD patients. The team said that they analysed the heart rate of 320 COPD patients with inflammatory lung disease and found that patients who engaged in regular intense physical exercise had lesser cardiac autonomic dysfunction.