Abstract 13925: Impact of In-hospital Acute Phase Cardiac Rehabilitation on Long-term Cardiovascular Outcomes in Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients

Background: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) post ST elevation acute myocardial infarction (STEMI) remains an underused tool. In part, this arises from uncertainty regarding the efficacy of CR, particularly acute phase CR. We therefore investigated the impact of in-hospital CR post STEMI on long-term cardiovascular outcomes. Methods: We enrolled 472 patients with successful reperfusion therapy within 12 hours of onset of STEMI, between October 2001 and October 2008. All patients were included to participate in the acute phase CR program during hospitalization and were followed for cardiovascular events which consist of cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and non-fatal stroke. Total number of walking CR times during hospitalization was counted and included into analyses. Results: During the 2592 person-years of follow-up, 83 patients (17.6%) experienced cardiovascular events. In-hospital CR was performed fewer in patients with cardiovascular events compared with those without events [median n...