Abstract
Objectives1. To assess the long-term effectiveness of a comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation programme on quality of life and survival in patients with a large spectrum of cardiovascular diseases (myocardial infarction, acute coronary syndrome, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty and coronary artery bypass grafting). 2. To establish the degree of correlation between expected improvement of health-related quality of life and improvement in physical function attributable to rehabilitation in the intervention group, in comparison with similar changes in the conventional care group.DesignRandomized, controlled, parallel-group design (intervention/conventional care).SettingAkershus County, southeast of Oslo City, Norway.Participants500 patients, men and women, aged 40-85 years, who have sustained at least one of the above-mentioned cardiovascular diseases.Interventions8 weeks of supervised, structured physical training of three periods of 20 min per week, targeting a heart rate of 60-70% of the individual's maximum; home-based physical exercise training with the same basic schedule as in the supervised period; quantification of patients' compliance with the exercise programme by the use of wristwatches, information stored in the watch memory being retrieved once a month during the 3-year follow-up period; and life-style modification with an emphasis on the cessation of smoking and on healthy nutrition and weight control.
Highlights
Post-infarct rehabilitation, a process of restoring physical and psychological fitness, has become increasingly employed in hospitals both in the USA and Europe during the past three decades, primarily as a vehicle of secondary prevention with the ultimate goal of reducing long-term mortality
Rehabilitation programmes from the 1960s were focused on psychologically based therapy and exercise training, with a gradual shift during the 1990s to programmes of comprehensive rehabilitation in the context of randomized, controlled trials [1,2,3,4]
Patients older than 70 years account for one-third to one-half of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) admitted to hospital
Summary
Post-infarct rehabilitation, a process of restoring physical and psychological fitness, has become increasingly employed in hospitals both in the USA and Europe during the past three decades, primarily as a vehicle of secondary prevention with the ultimate goal of reducing long-term mortality. The clinical benefits of cardiac rehabilitation are clear, as demonstrated by several reports and meta-analyses [5,6,7,8]. Patients older than 70 years account for one-third to one-half of patients with AMI admitted to hospital. The application of trial results to clinical practice is hampered by the fact that such patients, accounting for up to half of the cases of MI and having a disproportionately high mortality, are significantly under-represented in clinical trials
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
