March 1, 2021Journal of the American College of Cardiology
Cardiac Rehabilitation for Patients With Heart Failure
Key result
Cardiac rehabilitation improves quality of life and reduces HF hospitalizations but remains underused despite guidelines.
Why the study?
Despite proven outcome benefits, cost-effectiveness, and strong practice guideline recommendations, cardiac rehabilitation remains underused in patients with heart failure.
Does cardiac rehabilitation improve outcomes in patients with heart failure?
Key Points
- The aim is to evaluate the effects of cardiac rehabilitation on patients with heart failure.
- Defined rehabilitation components included exercise training, risk factor modification, and psychosocial assessments.
- Outcome assessments were focused on quality of life and hospitalization rates.
- Cardiac rehabilitation significantly improved quality of life and functional capacity.
- Exercise training reduced heart failure-related hospitalizations, highlighting its effectiveness.
Structured PICO
Does cardiac rehabilitation improve outcomes in patients with heart failure?
P
Population
Patients with heart failure
I
Intervention
Cardiac rehabilitation (multidisciplinary program including exercise training, cardiac risk factor modification, psychosocial assessment, and outcomes assessment)
Despite strong guideline recommendations and proven benefits in quality of life and hospitalization reduction, cardiac rehabilitation remains underused in heart failure patients.
Key expert perspectives
Captured external expert commentary on this paper, strongest first. Original sources are linked where available.
“The prevalence of HFpEF continues to increase due to aging of the population and the growing prevalence of risk factors such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes. Improved management of this large population of patients who have HFpEF, many of whom may be undertreated, represents an urgent unmet need.”
TLTara LaguHospitalist, professor of medicine, Northwestern University
“The AHA and ACC both recommend CR for patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction because it appears to reduce the risk of hospital readmission among patients with HF by 20% to 30%.”
PDPatrick DunnProgram director, American Heart Association
“Digital health technologies are a strategy for reducing the impact of a lack of access to a CR program or lack of time to commit.”
Implication
Research meaning: Leaves open how to best deliver it (e.g.
Abstract
Cardiac rehabilitation is defined as a multidisciplinary program that includes exercise training, cardiac risk factor modification, psychosocial assessment, and outcomes assessment. Exercise training and other components of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) are safe and beneficial and result in significant improvements in quality of life, functional capacity, exercise performance, and heart failure (HF)-related hospitalizations in patients with HF. Despite outcome benefits, cost-effectiveness, and strong practice guideline recommendations, CR remains underused. Clinicians, health care leaders, and payers should prioritize incorporating CR as part of the standard of care for patients with HF.
Discussion
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Cite This Study
Bozkurt et al. (2021) conducted a review in Heart Failure. Cardiac rehabilitation was evaluated. Cardiac rehabilitation improves quality of life, functional capacity, and heart failure-related hospitalizations in patients with HF, but remains underused despite guideline recommendations.