Key result
Post-AMI cardiac rehabilitation is linked to reduced mortality and reinfarction, yet only ~33% of patients complete it.
Why the study?
Despite Class I guideline recommendations and evidence of clinical benefit, fewer than one-third of eligible US patients complete cardiac rehabilitation after acute myocardial infarction, with persistent implementation gaps across delivery models and demographics.
Does cardiac rehabilitation improve outcomes in patients recovering from acute myocardial infarction?
Does cardiac rehabilitation improve outcomes in patients recovering from acute myocardial infarction?
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Despite strong evidence and Class I guideline recommendations for cardiac rehabilitation after AMI, significant implementation gaps remain, with less than one-third of eligible US patients participating.
Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a structured, multidisciplinary secondary-prevention intervention combining supervised exercise training, risk-factor modification, psychosocial support, and patient education. Decades of trial and registry data establish CR as one of the highest-value interventions available to patients recovering from acute myocardial infarction (AMI), with associations to reduced mortality, fewer reinfarctions, fewer hospital readmissions, improved left ventricular function, and better quality of life. This review synthesizes contemporary evidence on the physiological, clinical, and psychosocial impact of CR after AMI; examines how program timing, intensity, and delivery model (center-based, home-based, hybrid, and digital) shape outcomes; and reviews the substantial gap between guideline recommendations and real-world referral and participation rates. Despite a Class I guideline recommendation and consistent evidence of benefit, fewer than one-third of eligible patients in the United States complete a CR program, with pronounced disparities by sex, race, income, and geography. Closing this implementation gap - through systematic referral, flexible delivery models, and quality-indicator-driven auditing - represents one of the largest remaining opportunities to improve outcomes after AMI.
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W. Frank Peacock (2026) conducted a review in Acute Myocardial Infarction. Cardiac rehabilitation was evaluated. Cardiac rehabilitation after acute myocardial infarction is associated with reduced mortality and reinfarctions, yet fewer than one-third of eligible patients in the United States complete a program.
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