Cardiovascular rehabilitation in patients aged 70-year-old or older: benefits on functional capacity, physical activity and metabolic profile in younger vs. older patients

BACKGROUND: The benefits of exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (EBCR) programs in post-acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients have been demonstrated. Our aim was to assess the impact of EBCR in ≥ 70-years-old vs. younger post-AMI patients. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated patients who underwent a supervised EBCR protocol, twice a week during 6-12 weeks. We evaluated changes in several outcomes based on pre- and post-CRP assessments. RESULTS: Of a total of 1607 patients, 333 (21%) were ≥ 70-years-old. After the EBCR, an overall improvement on functional capacity, daily physical activity, lipid profile, body mass index, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) and C-reactive protein was observed in both younger and older patients (P < 0.05). Older patients showed a smaller benefit on the increment of daily physical activity and lipid profile improvement, but a larger reduction in NT-pro-BNP. In the multivariate analysis, only improvements on daily physical activity and HbA1c were dependent on age. CONCLUSION: As their younger counterparts, older patients, significantly improved functional capacity, metabolic parameters and level of daily physical activity after EBCR.