Mobility Status Plays an Important Role in the Risk of Cardiovascular Rehospitalizations in Patients with Heart Failure Undergoing Cardiac Rehabilitation: A Retrospective Cohort Study

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between mobility status and cardiovascular rehospitalizations in patients with heart failure undergoing cardiac rehabilitation. This retrospective cohort study included patients with heart failure undergoing cardiac rehabilitation. Mobility status was evaluated using functional ambulation categories (FAC), and each cardiovascular hospitalization was recorded by the case manager. A Poisson regression model was used to analyze the association between mobility status and cardiovascular rehospitalizations. This study included 154 patients with heart failure undergoing cardiac rehabilitation. For cardiovascular rehospitalizations within 6 months, the Poisson regression model reported that the impaired mobility group had a higher risk than the fair mobility group (incidence rate ratio (IRR) = 2.38, 95% CI 1.27–4.46, p = 0.007). For cardiovascular rehospitalizations within 12 months, the Poisson regression model also reported that the impaired mobility group had a higher risk than the fair mobility group (IRR = 1.91, 95% CI 1.16–3.13, p = 0.010). Other covariates, such as LVEF, peak oxygen consumption, and PAOD, could have impacted the risk of cardiovascular rehospitalizations. Among patients with heart failure undergoing cardiac rehabilitation, the impaired mobility group had a twofold risk of cardiovascular rehospitalizations, compared with the fair mobility group within both 6 and 12 months.