Barriers to cardiac rehabilitation: DOES AGE MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Geriatrics
• Public Health

Background:

• Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) improves outcomes for patients with heart disease.
• Understanding age-related barriers to CR is crucial for equitable access.
• Previous research has not fully elucidated age-specific barriers to CR.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively assess age-related differences in barriers to cardiac rehabilitation enrollment.
• To identify specific barriers that disproportionately affect older adults in CR participation.

Main Methods:

• A mailed survey was administered to 1,273 cardiac outpatients (mean age 65.9 years).
• Participants rated 18 potential barriers to CR enrollment and participation on a 5-point Likert scale.
• Analysis compared barrier endorsement between younger and older patient groups.

Main Results:

• Younger patients were more likely to participate in CR (P = .002).
• Older age correlated positively with the total number of CR barriers (P < .001).
• Older patients more strongly endorsed barriers including perceived exercise difficulty, lack of physician encouragement, comorbidities, and unawareness of CR benefits.

Conclusions:

• Significant age differences exist in perceived barriers to cardiac rehabilitation.
• Older adults encounter unique obstacles to CR enrollment and participation.
• Targeted interventions are necessary to overcome these modifiable barriers and ensure older patients benefit from CR.