Effect of Exercise Protocol on Patients undergoing Heart Valve Surgery -Reported Outcomes Measures

Abstract

Background: Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation has been found to improve patient-reported outcome measures and would be beneficial after heart valve surgery. Aim: Evaluate effect of exercise protocol on patients undergoing heart valve surgery -reported outcomes measures. Patients and methods: Research design: A quasi-experimental research design (study/control) was utilized. Sample: A purposeful sample of sixty patients undergoing heart valve surgery from both sexes, patients were randomly assigned into two equal groups. Setting: Cardiothoracic surgery department and outpatient clinic in Assiut University Heart Hospital. Tools: A structured interview questionnaire, Heart QoL questionnaire and Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS-r). Results: High statistically significance (p value <0.001**) was found in the study's findings between study and control group patients in global score of heart QOL after one month (24.83±2&18.33±2.93 respectively) also after three months (41.2±1.42 &32.03±2.8693 respectively). Patients in the study group and those in the control group showed highly significantly difference from one another in terms of overall score of Edmonton Symptom Assessment System after one month of exercise protocol (48.3±7.05 56.67±6.1 respectively) and after three months (8.07±8.25 &15.17±6.64 respectively) with p value (<0.001**). Conclusion: The study's results elucidated that exercise protocol improved patients reported outcomes measures as quality of life and symptoms in study group patients in comparison with control group patients. Recommendations: Comprehensive Arabic guidebook about exercise training through perioperative valve surgery should be easy to access by patients to help in improvement in patient reported outcome measures.