Resistance and balance training improves functional capacity in very old participants attending cardiac rehabilitation after coronary bypass surgery.

OBJECTIVES To compare the efficacy of intensive functional exercise training with that of usual cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in very old adults soon after coronary bypass surgery (CABG). DESIGN Randomized controlled trial. SETTING In-hospital CR. PARTICIPANTS Individuals aged 75 and older (n = 173, mean 78.5 ± 3.2) participated in inpatient CR, which started soon after surgery (13.1 ± 5.3 days) and lasted for a mean of 20.4 ± 3.2 days. INTERVENTION Participants were randomly assigned to an inpatient CR intervention group (IG; n = 84) or a control group (CG; n = 89). All participants participated in the inpatient CR program. In addition, IG participants participated in resistance training and special balance training (5 d/wk). MEASUREMENTS Six-minute walk test, cardiopulmonary exercise testing, Timed-Up-and-Go Test (TUG), and a maximal isometric strength test were used to access functional capacity and the MacNew questionnaire to evaluate health-related quality of life (HRQL). RESULTS There were significant improvements (P < .001) in all measured variables over the duration of CR. Improvements in functional capacity were significantly greater in the IG than the CG for 6-minute walk distance (6-MWD) (IG Δ 67.3 ± 49.0 m vs CG Δ 41.9 ± 51.7 m; P = .003), TUG time (IG Δ -2.4 ± 2.2 seconds vs CG Δ -1.2 ± 3.4 seconds; P = .005), and relative workload (IG Δ 0.19 ± 0.21 W/kg vs CG Δ 0.13 ± 0.11 W/kg; P = .03). CONCLUSION There were significant improvements in all measured variables in very old adults participating in CR soon after CABG. With additional functional exercise training, participants randomized to IG improved significantly more than those randomized to CG on 6-MWD, TUG time, and relative workload.