[Selection criteria for referral to cardiac rehabilitation centers]

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Public Health

Background:

• Current guidelines recommend cardiac rehabilitation post-acute cardiovascular events.
• Implementation faces barriers: limited capacity and low demand from acute care hospitals focused on immediate treatment.
• Post-acute complications, particularly after myocardial infarction, are increasingly recognized.

Purpose of the Study:

• To address challenges in cardiac rehabilitation access.
• To define priority admission criteria based on clinical risk for inpatient cardiac rehabilitation centers.
• To improve continuity of care for high-risk cardiovascular patients in the post-acute phase.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of clinical epidemiology changes in major cardiovascular diseases.
• Development of priority criteria for inpatient cardiac rehabilitation admission by the Joint ANMCO/IACPR-GICR Committee.
• Focus on clinical risk stratification for post-acute care.

Main Results:

• Identified increasing frequency of post-acute cardiovascular complications.
• Established clinical risk-based criteria for prioritizing patients for cardiac rehabilitation.
• Proposed a framework for enhanced continuity of care.

Conclusions:

• The defined criteria aim to optimize access to cardiac rehabilitation for high-risk patients.
• This consensus document supports a more structured approach to post-acute cardiovascular care.
• Prioritizing based on clinical risk is crucial for effective management of post-acute cardiovascular disease.