Evaluation of a therapeutic patient education program on physical activity, at a distance of a cardiac rehabilitation

Educational programs for patients are a major part in the management of cardiac patients in rehabilitation centers. They allow patients to change their lifestyle to keep exercise training in daily life. Objective. - This study intended to estimate short and long run effects of exercise training educational programs, and watch lifestyle adjustments in cardiac patient's life. Methods. - We have included 134 patients (27 women and 107 men) 6 months after a rehabilitation in which they participated in an educational program, we evaluated in pre-test/post-test: knowledge about physical activity, level of physical activity by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), follow-up of physical activity recommendations, a 6-minute walk test(6MWT), weight and body composition by impedance-meter. Results. - We found that patients improved their knowledge of physical activity at the end of cardiac rehabilitation (12.48 vs. 15.11) and consolidated this knowledge 6 months later (15.10). Patients remain active enough after rehabilitation with a 50.03% increase in energy expenditure per week. Walking distances during 6MWT are improved at the end of rehabilitation and maintained six months later. Conclusion. - An education program about physical activity during rehabilitation allows patients to acquire knowledge that can be used to maintain new lifestyle habits, especially by remaining physically active. More studies are needed to prove that continuity of physical practice contributes to maintaining the physical skills developed during rehabilitation. (C) 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.