What is the clinical evidence from this study?

Study design: Other. Population: Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) (n=49). Intervention: Cardiac telerehabilitation vs. Home exercise program. Primary outcome: Functional Independence Measure Scale (FIMS) at 3 months (MD 1.88, p=0.019).

February 5, 2025Open Access

Effects of a Cardiac Telerehabilitation Program on the Quality of Life and Functional Independence of Patients With Coronary Artery Bypass Graft: A Non-randomized Controlled Trial

SKSatani KalpeshSuamandeep Vidyapeeth University NMNeha MukkamalaKM Shah Dental College and Hospital PKPalani KumarSuamandeep Vidyapeeth University

Key Result

Cardiac telerehabilitation significantly improved functional independence (mean difference 1.88, p=0.019) and quality of life at three months post-discharge compared to a home exercise program in patients following CABG.

Structured PICO

Does a cardiac telerehabilitation program improve functional independence and quality of life in patients with coronary artery bypass graft compared to an unsupervised home exercise program?

Population

49 patients aged 41 to 74 years recovering from coronary artery bypass graft surgery without complications, followed for 3 months.

Intervention

Cardiac telerehabilitation (supervised via video call for a minimum of twice a week) combined with a 12-week aerobic and strengthening exercise routine (Rehabilitation home program).

Comparator

Home exercise program (the same 12-week aerobic and strengthening exercise routine distributed as a handout) without video call supervision.

Outcome

Functional independence assessed with the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) scale and quality of life measured with the Short Form-36 (SF-36) scale at discharge, one month, and three months post discharge.patient reported

Cardiac telerehabilitation significantly improves functional independence and quality of life in post-CABG patients compared to an unsupervised home exercise program.

Main Result

Mean Difference: 1.88

Absolute Event Rate: 119.88% vs 118%

p-value: p=0.019

Limitations

Limited number of participants
Not assigned at random, leading to potential selection bias
Single-center study, limiting generalizability

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The most common surgical approach for the treatment of coronary artery disease is coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), and it helps to lower mortality and morbidity. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a systematic approach for improving patients' physical and functional abilities. It also helps promote independence and reduce the rate of hospital readmissions. Following surgery, there is a relatively low referral rate for CR, and compliance is much more of an issue. Increasing involvement in CR can be achieved by cardiac telerehabilitation. Thus, this study aims to evaluate how cardiac telerehabilitation affects functional independence and quality of life in patients with CABG. METHODS: A non-randomized controlled trial was conducted in a multispecialty hospital for four years in which a total of 49 consecutive CABG patients were recruited and divided into a cardiac telerehabilitation (25 patients, including 12 males and 13 females) and home exercise group (24 patients, including eight males and 16 females) through purposive sampling based on their ability to use audio-visual aid and participate in cardiac telerehabilitation. Functional independence was assessed with the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) scale and quality of life was measured with the Short Form-36 (SF-36) scale at discharge, one month, and three months post discharge. RESULTS: The mean FIM score of group A was 107.40 (4.72) and group B was 105.92 (2.60), whereas the mean SF-36 score of group A was 35.61 (6.36) and group B was 31.59 (5.18). At three months post discharge, patients in the cardiac telerehabilitation group showed statistically significant improvement in functional status (p = 0.033 at one month and p = 0.019 at three months post cardiac telerehabilitation) and quality of life (p = 0.001 at three months post cardiac telerehabilitation). CONCLUSION: Cardiac telerehabilitation is beneficial for patients with CABG, improving their daily living and quality of life if they are unable to attend center-based CR.

KI fragen

Bookmark

View Full Paper