Ab. No. 179 Feasibility of Cardiac Rehabilitation in Patients With Heart Failure at Tertiary Hospital

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Introduction: Cardiovascular disease is a major contributor to disease burden globally. Heart failure (HF) emerged as a major global health issue with an estimated worldwide prevalence of >37.7 million. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) has been demonstrated to improve functional status, and quality of life, reduction in hospital lengths of stay, treatment costs and reduce depression in patients with heart failure. Despite the growing evidence of the benefits of CR, uptake remains low with only 30% taking part in CR. The aim of this study was therefore to incorporate a standard and hybrid model of training and to assess outcomes in terms of reduce hospital admissions, improvements in quality of living, depression, and exercise tolerance. We sought to establish the feasibility of two different models of CR and to identify potential barriers to participate in CR. Methods: This feasibility study used mixed methods to describe characteristics and changes in a cohort of patients with heart failure. Study participants were prospectively recruited and allocated into institution-based cardiac rehabilitation (IBCR) arm, a hybrid cardiac rehabilitation (HCR) arm. After 6-month follow-up, participants were invited to participate in focus group discussions. The primary measure of feasibility was the ability of study participants to attain a mean adherence rate of at least 25%. Result: This study found that CR is feasible for patients with an adherence rate of 48% for IBCR and an adherence rate of 40% for HCR. Both study arms showed significant changes in scores. Participants in focus group discussions identified barriers to cardiac rehabilitation. Conclusion: CR is a feasible treatment intervention for heart failure. There is a need for further research to evaluate the efficacy of cardiac rehabilitation and development of innovative ways to improve treatment adherence.