Lifestyle, risk factor control and use of recommended medications in patients with coronary heart disease one year after cardiac rehabilitation

Background Prevention of coronary heart disease is crucial to reduce disease progression. Cardiac rehabilitation is defined as a structured multidisciplinary intervention for cardiovascular assessment and management. Purpose To describe adherence to guidelines regarding drug and lifestyle changes (diet, smoking and exercise), one year after cardiac rehabilitation for coronary heart disease. Methods and results Fifty patients (86% male, mean age: 59 years) enrolled in a cardiac rehabilitation center for coronary heart disease were included. At one year, 5 patients were lost to follow-up. The rate of prescription of evidence-based therapies was high: antiplatelet therapy in 100%, beta-blockers in 93%, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin II antagonists in 82% and statins in 93%. Patients changed their lifestyle regarding diet with significant lost of weight–5.6 kg ( P  = 0.03), increasing diet score + 6.7 points ( P  = 0.001). Among those who increased this score, 84% had received a specific dietetic education in the rehabilitation center. LDL cholesterol  P  = 0.002), the maximum output in the exercise test and the 6 minutes walk test were not significantly different between one year follow up and discharge rehabilitation. Conclusion Unlike in the EUROASPIRE studies, a large majority of coronary patients achieve, at one year, the guidelines for secondary prevention with high prevalences of smoking cessation, physical activity, prescription of recommended therapies, lost of weight. These results confirm the benefits of cardiac rehabilitation after coronary heart disease.