Effects of a Home-Based Cardiac Rehabilitation Program on the Physical Activity Levels of Patients With Coronary Artery Disease

In Brief PURPOSE Lifestyle changes including daily physical activity (PA) slow the progression of coronary artery disease. This study evaluated the effects of a home-based cardiac rehabilitation education and counseling intervention on daily PA index, daily time spent in different PA intensities, and daily PA patterns. METHODS Thirty patients with history of recent myocardial infarction were recruited and equally divided into intervention (mean age = 67.2 ± 5.4 years) and control (mean age = 69.8 ± 6.14 years) groups. The intervention group received a home-based cardiac rehabilitation intervention program of education and counseling for 12 weeks, regarding cardiovascular risk factor management; benefits and risks of PA; frequency, intensity, duration, and type of PA; moments and activities of daily living to perform PA; effort control procedures during PA; and emergency procedures. During the same period, the control group received usual outpatient follow-up care. Physical activity was objectively measured during 3 consecutive weekdays, using the ActiGraph accelerometer (model GT1M, Fort Walton Beach, Florida), in 3 different moments (1st, 6th, and 12th weeks). RESULTS The intervention group significantly increased daily PA index (from 278.2 ± 128.0 to 525.5 ± 153.4 counts per minute per day, P < .05) and time spent in moderate-intensity PA (from 16.8 ±12.6 to 63.7 ± 23.3 minutes per day, P < .05) during the intervention period. No changes were observed in the control group. CONCLUSIONS Patients participating in the home-based intervention increased PA throughout the day; moreover, they performed enough moderate-intensity PA to meet heath-related recommendations. Patients with recent myocardial infarction from a small-town rural hospital, participating in a home-based cardiac rehabilitation educational and counseling intervention, became more physically active than patients receiving usual hospital care. Moreover, they performed enough physical activity of moderate intensity to meet heath-related recommendations.