title: Cardiac rehabilitation 1992.
abstract: The goal of cardiac rehabilitation is to optimize function through attention to the patient's medical needs, risk factors for recurrent events, physical reconditioning, and psycho-social needs. Medical needs include beta-adrenergic blocking agents and aspirin unless contraindicated, angiotensin converting inhibitors for left ventricular dysfunction, and relief of residual ischemia. Smoking, lipid abnormalities, physical inactivity, and hypertension remain important predictors of reinfarction and death and must be controlled. Obesity must be addressed because it exacerbates these problems. Therefore, the principles of behavior change should be applied to help patients control their risk factors and adopt healthy lifestyles. Smoking cessation and appropriate dietary behaviors can be adopted by the patient while in the hospital. Physical reconditioning can also begin with twice-daily exercises. After discharge from hospital and after an initial submaximal exercise evaluation, the patient will benefit from three sessions per week of outpatient cardiac rehabilitation for six to eight weeks. These sessions should last about an hour and raise the patient's heart rate as much as 30 beats per minute. Along with physical reconditioning, the cardiac rehabilitation program provides an opportunity to address risk factor modification, return to work, return to sexual activity, management of depression and anxiety, and the presence of risk factors in the patient's family. The patient should attend reinforcing sessions every three months for the first year and as necessary after that to control risk factors and reinforce the necessity for physical fitness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, MN 55905.
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Kottke
mesh_terms: D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans