Who can benefit from cardiac rehabilitation

In the past, cardiac rehab was offered only to people who experienced a major cardiac event, such as a heart attack or bypass surgery. But cardiac rehab is now known to benefit people who have long-term heart problems, such as heart failure. You may benefit from a cardiac rehab program if you have had one of the following conditions or procedures:

• Heart attack (myocardial infarction)
• Heart failure (sometimes called congestive heart failure, or CHF)
• Chest pain or angina
• Known coronary artery disease (CAD), or major risk factors for CAD
• Valve replacement (valve surgery [AVR/MVR])
• Heart transplant (or kidney transplants)
• Abnormal exercise test
• Irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia)
• Coronary artery spasm
• Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)
• Pacemaker or implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) placement
• Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery

Not all people who have had the conditions or procedures listed above may be appropriate candidates for cardiac rehab. You may have additional medical concerns that prevent your doctor from recommending cardiac rehab. However, almost everyone with heart disease or risk factors for heart disease would benefit from some form of risk factor assessment, activity counseling, and health education.