Effects of a comprehensive rehabilitation programme in patients with three-vessel coronary disease

The aim of the study was to assess the effects of rehabilitation in 46 consecutive three-vessel coronary disease patients who were considered to have no possibility of revascularization; there were 45 males and one female (mean age 58) sent in the third week after acute myocardial infarction (N = 31) or after unstable angina (N = 15). Left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) was normal in 50% of the patients, but 15% had an EF less than or equal to 0.30. Three patients could not begin their rehabilitation because of unstable angina (N = 2) or severe pulmonary oedema (N = 1). After a 4-week rehabilitation programme, the comparison of stress tests revealed an increase in functional capacities (maximal work-load = 103.6 +/- 27 W before rehabilitation, 126.4 +/- 31 W after rehabilitation, P less than 0.001), and an improvement of the ischaemic threshold [82 +/- 32 W before rehabilitation, 91 +/- 31 W after rehabilitation, P less than 0.05]. During long-term follow up [20.8 months], four patients died of cardiac events [8.7%]; all of them had an EF less than 0.45. Among the 42 living patients 61.9% were asymptomatic, 28.7% had exertional angina, and 9.4% had cardiac complications, and coronary surgery was performed in two cases with good results. The level of return to work was 85% with the mean delay of 1.7 months after rehabilitation. So, rehabilitation in three-vessel coronary disease patients is safe under medical control; improvements in exertional capacities are obvious and give the patients a better self confidence as assessed by the good score of return to work after rehabilitation.