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Cardiovascular complications during exercise training of cardiac patients

W L Haskell

    Circulation
    |May 1, 1978
    PubMed

    Insights

    Cardiac rehabilitation exercise is generally safe for patients. Studies show low rates of major cardiovascular events, with continuous electrocardiogram monitoring further reducing risks during supervised exercise programs.

    Area of Science:

    • Cardiology
    • Exercise Physiology
    • Public Health

    Background:

    • Cardiac rehabilitation programs are crucial for patient recovery.
    • Supervised exercise is a key component of cardiac rehab.
    • Understanding complication rates is vital for program safety.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To determine the incidence of major cardiovascular complications during supervised exercise in cardiac rehabilitation.
    • To assess the safety of exercise training for cardiac patients.

    Main Methods:

    • A questionnaire was used to collect data from 30 cardiac rehabilitation programs across North America.
    • Information was gathered on 13,570 participants over 1,629,634 patient hours of supervised exercise.
    • Complications were categorized as fatal or nonfatal, including cardiac arrest and myocardial infarction.

    Main Results:

    • The overall complication rate was low, with one nonfatal event per 34,673 patient hours and one fatal event per 116,402 patient hours.
    • 50 cardiac arrests occurred (8 fatal), 7 myocardial infarctions (2 fatal), and 4 other fatalities.
    • Programs with continuous electrocardiogram monitoring showed lower complication rates.

    Conclusions:

    • Medically prescribed and supervised exercise is reasonably safe for selected cardiac patients.
    • Continuous electrocardiogram monitoring may further enhance safety.
    • These findings support the continued use of exercise in cardiac rehabilitation.

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