Adapted cardiac rehabilitation for individuals after stroke and transient ischaemic attack: A scoping review

ObjectiveTo summarise evidence on the intervention design, safety, feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of a cardiac rehabilitation-based intervention for people who have had a stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA).Data sourcesMedline, PsycINFO, Embase, and CINAHL were searched between inception and 2026 for experimental or observational English-language studies that evaluated a cardiac rehabilitation-based intervention delivered to people with a history of stroke or TIA.Review methodsData were synthesised descriptively.ResultsNineteen studies were included (1951 participants), nine included people who had had a TIA, one exclusively. Most studies specified that participants had to have minimal or no stroke-associated disability. Reported time since stroke or TIA ranged from four weeks to more than one year. The interventions varied considerably in dose and components, though all included aerobic exercise training. Adverse event reporting was inconsistent; no study concluded that their interventions were unsafe, and one study stopped exercise testing. All 14 studies that measured feasibility reported that their study or intervention was feasible, though one concluded that it may not be feasible to enrol people with moderate stroke severity into existing cardiac rehabilitation programmes. Eight studies examined acceptability, all concluding that the interventions were acceptable and positively received. One powered randomised controlled trial found improvements were not sustained at 1-year follow-up.ConclusionsThe evidence suggests that cardiac rehabilitation after stroke and TIA is safe, feasible and acceptable. There are limited data relating to the inclusion of people with moderate or severe disability after stroke, or from trials regarding effectiveness.