Postoperative exercise training develops normal levels of physical activity in a group of children following cardiac surgery.
Children with congenital heart defects often demonstrate a reduced capacity for exercise, even after surgical intervention. Forty subjects, with various heart defects, completed a 5-year study to evaluate the impact of a postoperative training program on their physical exercise capacity. All of the patients were significantly less active than their peers prior to the surgical intervention. Subjects who completed a simple, home exercise program during the first 3 postoperative months achieved a normal level of physical fitness. These benefits were maintained up to 5-years postoperatively without further intervention. Children who did not receive a postoperative training program remained significantly below their healthy peers. Therefore, a simple exercise training program, conducted early in the postoperative period would appear essential to the achievement of appropriate levels of physical activity for children with congenital heart defects.
Variety Village, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada.
P E
PE
Longmuir
M S
MS
Tremblay
R C
RC
Goode
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010349:Patient Compliance; D010809:Physical Fitness; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000534:rehabilitation*