Cardiac rehabilitation in patients older than 75 years : Results from the French cohort of EU-CaRE study

Background The benefits of exercise based cardiac rehabilitation (CR) have been documented in elderly patients. The EUCaRE project included elderly patients (> 65 years) in 7 European countries, however in France, patient > 75 years were considered as elderly. Aim To compare the results of CR in patients aged ≤ or > 75 years old. Methods The prospective French cohort study from EU-CaRE study included 220 consecutive elderly patients (65+ years old) with coronary artery disease and/or heart valve replacement undergoing CR. All patients underwent cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) at baseline, at the end of CR and after 1 year of follow up. Results Of 217 patients with complete data, 71 were older than 75 years (32.72 %). Demographic characteristics, cardiac risk factors and comorbidities were similar between the 2 groups except for age, and the mean BMI that was lower in the > 75 years group. Rate of residential vs. ambulatory and the mean time from index event to start CR were comparable between older and ≤ 75 years (73.3 % vs. 67.6 % ; P = 0.385 and 18.8 ± 13 I vs. 20.9 ± 16 days ; P = 0.689, respectively). CPET results are displayed in the Table 1 . We found that the gain of exercise capacity after CR is similar between the two groups (P = ns), with a same sustainability at one year. Conclusion Patients older than 75 years improved functional capacity after CR similarly to youngers and should not be excluded if they are able to perform an exercise training program.