This week, Bobbi Conner talks with Dr. Will Edwards about cardiac rehab. Dr. Edwards is a cardiologist and Director of the Cardiac Rehab Program at the Heart and Vascular Center at MUSC.
TRANSCRIPT:
Conner: I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio with Health Focus here at the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Cardiac rehabilitation can help a person recover from a cardiovascular event, and it can also help reduce the risk of future heart issues. Doctor William Edwards is here to provide the details. Doctor Edwards is a cardiologist and Director of the Cardiac Rehab Program at the Heart and Vascular Center at MUSC. Doctor Edwards, when is cardiac rehab typically recommended?
Dr. Edwards: Cardiac rehab is a program that is designed for patients who have had a prior heart attack, or possibly PCI, which means stents placed to the heart. It's also designed for patients who've undergone cardiac surgery, such as valve replacement or coronary bypass. We also utilize it in patients who have heart failure and who've undergone either heart or lung transplantation.
Conner: And what exactly is cardiac rehab?
Dr. Edwards: Cardiac rehab involves physicians, dieticians are involved, nurses, physical and occupational therapists, as well as psychologists, pharmacists, as well as the patient's loved ones. And it's focused on both exercise training but also physical activity promotion, education for the patient, as well as kind of overall risk factor management and psychological support for these patients.
Conner: And when is cardiac rehab typically started for someone who needs this.
Dr. Edwards: Cardiac rehab actually starts when the patient is in the hospital. And what it includes is really just getting the patient up, moving, might involve some gentle light exercises that can be monitored.
Conner: And this cardiac rehab continues once the patient is home from the hospital.
Dr. Edwards: Cardiac rehab really starts to kick in once the patient gets home. This is considered kind of phase two or the outpatient setting. Typically, it is about a 12 week program involving up to 36 sessions, where the patients will come in anywhere from 2 to 3 times a week to the cardiac rehab facility. This is kind of when you start getting into the, I guess, the meat and potatoes of cardiac rehab.
Conner: How effective is cardiac rehab in reducing future heart problems in people who have already had a heart attack or some other heart event?
Dr. Edwards: So cardiac rehab has got a lot of great data, both short and long term, in terms of benefits for the patient. There's been a number of clinical trials that have looked at this really showing an overall reduction in both mortality, but also the risk of recurrent heart attacks. Patients typically do better in regards to medication adherence and what we call kind of lifestyle modifications, which are controlling the risk factors that often lead to their disease in the first place. The other thing that I will say is there's also been a lot of benefit in the overall psychological wellness for these patients, in regards to anxiety and depression, which I think are often underappreciated, post-cardiac events.
Conner: And how does a potential patient really get started with cardiac rehab? Do they need to request this, or is this automatically a part of their recovery?
Dr. Edwards: That's a good question, and it varies by institution. Most hospitals have programs and order sets that automatically refer patients to cardiac rehab after they've had a heart attack or surgery, but also cardiac rehab is really underutilized. So I would encourage patients to, you know, really talk to their physician or talk to their cardiologist prior to leaving the hospital.
Conner: Doctor Edwards, thanks for this information about cardiac rehab.
Dr. Edwards: Thank you. Bobbi. It's nice talking with you.
Conner: From the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio.
Health Focus transcripts are intended to accurately represent the original audio version of the program; however, some discrepancies or inaccuracies may exist. The audio format serves as the official record of Health Focus programming.
