Evaluation of cardiac rehabilitation on functional capacity in depressed and nondepressed patients after angioplasty

BACKGROUND: About 50% of the annual deaths in the developed countries are as a result of coronary artery disease. Several studies have shown the role of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in improving cardiovascular indices including functional capacity, reducing depression, and mortality rates in cardiovascular patients. One of the psychological problems observed in cardiovascular patients is depression. Depression is one of the most important barriers to the treatment of heart attack, because it leads to denial of the disease and reduces the patient's motivation to continue treatment. OBJECTIVES: There are controversy information about the relationship between the effects of CR on these cases after angioplasty. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of CR on functional capacity in depressed and nondepressed patients after angioplasty in patients referred to Imam Khomeini, Ahvaz. METHODS: This descriptive epidemiological study was performed on 54 patients referred for angioplasty. Functional capacity and depression score before and after participation in the 2-month CR program were evaluated in two groups of depressed and nondepressed patients. Data were analyzed by SPSS software, and the significance level was considered as P < 0.05. RESULTS: The results of this study showed that in both the groups, the functional capacity after CR was significantly increased compared with the previous period (P < 0.001). Also in depressed patients, there was a significant decrease in depression scores (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Our findings showed improvement of functional capacity index following angioplasty, suggesting that patients participating in CR can be recommended by therapists. In addition, the results of this study showed that the participation in the CR program greatly affects the improvement of functional capacity and reduction in depression in patients undergoing angioplasty.