Rehabilitation of older coronary heart disease patients
Description:
Rehabilitation of older coronary heart disease patients in an ongoing project the aims of which are to describe the effects of rehabilitation of two patient groups: 1.newly operated coronary heart disease patients and 2. coronary heart disease patients in a nonacute phase. Rehabilitation includes physical, psychic and social rehabilitation and counselling about positive health habits from the viewpoint of secondary prevention. The effects of intervention programs on nutritional habits, smoking, habits of physical exercising, depressive symptoms, physical functioning and quality of life will be described.
There exist two intervention studies in this project. In the first one rehabilitation and counselling have been arranged among patients operated due to myocardial infarction or coronary heart disease in the Helsinki University Hospital. The study began in 1998, and operated patients were randomly selected to the intervention group and the control group. Rehabilitation and counselling were arranged during 12 months for every patient in the intervention group. Data for assessing the effects were collected before the operation and three months, six months and twelve months after the operation by postal questionnaires. The intervention program will last until the end of 2002, and data collection will last until the end of 2003.
In the second intervention study a rehabilitation and counselling program was arranged among older coronary heart disease patients having their illness in a nonacute phase. These patients were derived from the population of the epidemiological study performed in Lieto in the end of the 90`s. Patients were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Rehabilitation and counselling lasted 12 months, and follow-up measurements were performed at the end of 2000.
Results:
Group rehabilitation had positive effects on nutritional and exercise behaviour, depressive and heart symptoms, life satisfaction, the use of lipid lowering medicines and total serum cholesterol level among the aged with coronary heart disease.
Principal Investigators:
Prof. Sirkka-Liisa Kivelä, Department of General Practice, University of Turku Docent Raimo Isoaho, Department of General Practice, University of Turku Dr. Tapani Mattila, Department of Heart Surgery, Helsinki University Hospital Professor Pekka Laippala, Institute of Health Science, University of Tampere Professor Harri Sintonen, Department of Public Health, University of Helsinki
Young Investigators:
PhD students: Marika Salminen, Maika Kummel