title: Home-based exercise rehabilitation with telemedicine following cardiac surgery.
abstract: We evaluated the feasibility of a home-based rehabilitation programme, which was designed to resemble an in-hospital rehabilitation programme. Patients who underwent cardiac surgery (EuroSCORE 0-10) followed a one-month home rehabilitation programme supervised by a nurse-tutor and a physiotherapist. Physiotherapy was performed at home with calisthenic exercises and bicycle-ergometer tests. Patients transmitted the recorded ECGs by telephone to a service centre. They also performed a 6-minute walking test and filled in a satisfaction questionnaire at the end of the programme. A total of 47 patients were enrolled in the study. There were 3050 telephone calls, of which 3012 (99%) were scheduled and 38 were unscheduled. No further action was required in 95% of calls. There were 809 sessions for calisthenic exercises and 1039 for exercise training. There was a significant increase in the 6-minute walking test distance at the end of the programme compared to the baseline (404 m vs. 307 m, P < 0.001). Patient satisfaction, as measured in a questionnaire, was about 95% overall. This type of home rehabilitation using telemedicine appears to be worth implementing in selected categories of patients.
authors.affiliation: Fondazione Salvatore Maugeri, IRCCS, 25066 Lumezzane, Brescia, Italy. simonetta.scalvini@fsm.it
authors.forename: Simonetta
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Scalvini
authors.forename: Emanuela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zanelli
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Comini
authors.forename: Margherita Dalla
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Tomba
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Troise
authors.forename: Amerigo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giordano
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000379:methods / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D055815:Young Adult