Home-Based Cardiac Rehab a "Reasonable Option"

By Kelly Young

Edited by David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH, and Jaye Elizabeth Hefner, MD

Home-based cardiac rehabilitation is a "reasonable option" for patients with cardiovascular disease at low-to-moderate risk, according to a new scientific statement from the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation, the American Heart Association, and the American College of Cardiology. The statement appears in Circulation.

Less than 20% of people eligible for cardiac rehabilitation actually receive it. For patients who can't attend a traditional, center-based program, one based in the home or another nonclinical setting may be appropriate. Home-based rehab would rely on remote coaching about risk-modifying health behaviors, including indirect exercise supervision.

Some evidence suggests that center- and home-based programs have similar quality of life, cost, and mortality rates.

Asked to comment, Dr. Harlan Krumholz, editor-in-chief of NEJM Journal Watch Cardiology, wrote: "In the future, much of cardiac rehabilitation may be home-based, which may make it more accessible to many more people, and this statement goes a long way to discuss the evidence, standards, and implications. We will need to monitor carefully the safety and effectiveness of these new delivery mechanisms — and understand what are the key ingredients to a successful program."