title: The effect of cardiac rehabilitation on recovery of heart rate over one minute after exercise in patients with coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effects of cardiac rehabilitation on the recovery of heart rate over 1 min after peak exercise of patients who received coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty subjects who received CABG surgery were randomly assigned to enter or not enter a cardiac rehabilitation exercise programme (cardiac rehabilitation n = 15; control group n = 15).
  
  
  METHODS
  Outpatient cardiac rehabilitation centre in a national medical hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients assigned to the cardiac rehabilitation group received 36 sessions of the exercise programme, three times a week, with the intensity designed to achieve an individual 60-85% peak heart rate in cardiopulmonary exercise test. Patients assigned to the control group did not get further advice about a specific exercise programme.
  
  
  METHODS
  Resting heart rate and recovery of heart rate over 1 min after a peak exercise test at discharge and three months later were collected. The heart rates were analysed with computer-recorded electrocardiogram.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At follow-up, the 15 patients in the cardiac rehabilitation group had a significantly lower resting heart rate (77.46+/-9.49 versus 92.31+/-10.18 bpm; p<0.001) and a significantly higher recovery of heart rate over 1 min (16.38+/-6.32 versus 11.38+4.81 bpm; p = 0.03) compared with the control group. There were also significant reductions in resting heart rates (cardiac rehabilitation p < 0.001; control p = 0.05) and improvements in recovery on heart rate over 1 min (cardiac rehabilitation p < 0.001; control p = 0.001) compared with baseline measurements in both the cardiac rehabilitation and control groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cardiac rehabilitation had a positive effect on the improvement of recovery on heart rate over 1 min in patients with coronary artery disease who received CABG surgery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung and Department of Physical Therapy, HungKuang University, Taichung County, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Sen-Wei
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Yi-Wen
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Shyi-Kuen
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010809:Physical Fitness; D016896:Treatment Outcome