Rehab Select Blog

You recently suffered from a heart attack – and while it was scary, you’re starting to feel better. You’re following your doctor’s orders by eating heart-healthy foods, exercising, and reducing stress wherever possible. So why does your doctor still think you need a cardiac rehabilitation program?

If you struggle with acute or chronic heart disease, your medical provider may refer you for cardiac rehabilitation. Cardiac rehab therapy can have substantial benefits, both in terms of improving your quality of life and reducing your risk of serious complications.

Heart disease is incredibly common. Around 735,000 Americans have a heart attack every year, reports the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The good news is that, according to the Mayo Clinic, “Many forms of heart disease can be prevented or treated with healthy lifestyle choices.” 

If you have been diagnosed with heart disease, you doubtless have already been told that you will need to make some changes in your lifestyle to improve your health and well-being. Whether that diagnosis came by way of your routine annual health exam or by means of a cardiac event, cardiac rehabilitation may be your best bet for making those changes quickly and, most importantly, effectively. Here, we will explain what cardiac rehab is and how it can benefit individuals who have been diagnosed with heart disease.

Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, and millions of Americans suffer from one form or another of this potentially deadly ailment. There are actually a large number of conditions that can adversely affect someone's heart, ranging from genetic defects some are born with to lifestyle-generated cardiovascular issues which generally result in narrowed blood vessels leading to chest pain and increased risk of such events as strokes.

Your heart is one of the most important muscles in your body. A properly-functioning heart allows you to enjoy exercise and other fun physical activities with your loved ones. Unfortunately, heart disease, a condition where the blood vessels leading to the heart get clogged with plaque, fat, and calcium, can wreak havoc on a person’s heart and cardiac system.

Acute myocardial infarction is the medical term for what is commonly known as a heart attack. This cardiovascular event occurs when one of the coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart, becomes blocked. This causes blood flow to the heart to be suddenly cut off or critically reduced, leading to tissue damage in the heart that can result in significant impairment of heart function or death.

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which the heart becomes less efficient at pumping blood. WebMD states that CHF is a condition where the “blood moves through the heart and body at a slower rate, and pressure in the heart increases. As a result, the heart can’t pump enough oxygen and nutrients to meet the body's needs.” A number of underlying conditions can cause CHF by damaging the heart muscle. Some conditions that lead to CHF can be reversed, and others can be controlled, and treatment goals generally include addressing its underlying causes, slowing progression of CHF, and improving symptoms.  

According to Yale Medicine, almost 6 million Americans have congestive heart failure. But there is good news: with the correct treatment, patients can recover to good health.

Unlike a standard physical therapy approach that treats conditions using standard procedures, personalized therapy takes all aspects of the patient’s health into consideration. This personalized approach is especially helpful for people with heart disease. Heart disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is the leading cause of death in the United States. Fortunately, many causes of heart disease are treatable using a combination of prescription medications and personalized therapy.

When a patient suffers an acute cardiac episode like a heart attack, he/she is taken immediately to the hospital and given life-saving interventions.

The very nature of hospitals means that they provide acute care during critical times. Once patients are well enough to leave the hospital but not well enough to go home, the next step is cardiac rehabilitation.