[Cardiac rehabilitation].

If skill in diagnosis singled out the physicians of the earlier part of the twentieth century, then the lure of drug therapy has surely been the main preoccupation of the doctors of today. But are either of these disciplines sufficient ? Labelling a disease and handing out a bottle will not necessarily cure a sick man. The whole process to complete recovery, known by the rather unattractive term 'rehabilitation', is much more comprehensive than this and more interesting and satisfying to the doctor when properly managed. Almost neglected by practitioners of medicine, rehabilitation is practically ignored by teachers and unknown to students. The full return of a patient to his or her former state as a healthy person is, of course, our proper responsibility, requiring not only our diagnostic skill and therapeutic knowledge but also a careful application of humanity and frequent involvement with social and psychological factors. Not all of these are always directly within the doctor's province but he must recognize the need and know how to apply the available services. Cardiologists in particular have special responsibilities in this direction. The emotions evoked by heart disease make it at once a form of illness feared by patients, their relatives, and even by their employers; it is, more than most conditions, liable to cause neurosis and prolonged invalidism which can be prevented by proper management. In addition there are strong economic claims for more active rehabilitation of cardiac patients at a time when ischaemic heart disease is being diagnosed in increasingly large numbers and particularly in younger age groups. It is vital to keep this productive section of the population as healthy as possible and to minimize periods of illness even if, by promoting longevity, other economic and social problems may be produced. Already a cost-benefit analysis study