[Post-operative cardiac rehabilitation programs for early returning to daily life activities: self-measurement of heart rate and blood pressure during staying at home trial].

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Recently, early mobilization and discharge after cardiac surgery have been recommended. However, many patients are anxious about returning to daily life soon after undergoing heart operations. To resolve this problem, an individualized rehabilitation plan for each patient is important. Rehabilitation programs must estimate the level of cardiac function in daily life. This study evaluated self-measurements of heart rate and blood pressure during home-based exercise training. METHODS: Thirty-six patients, 28 men and 8 women (mean age 58 +/- 19 years) who underwent cardiac operations were enrolled in this study. None of the patients experienced postoperative complications. Changes in heart rate and blood pressure during daily activities at home were measured by the patients. This data was then used to plan individual rehabilitation programs. RESULTS: The blood pressure rose from 114 +/- 17 to 139 +/- 21 mmHg (mean increase of 25 +/- 15 mmHg) when the patients were asked to walk up and down a set of stairs. Thirteen patients (36%) exhibited an increase in blood pressure of 30 mmHg or more while ascending the stairs. The patients' blood pressure returned to its pre-exercise level after 5 min. The heart rate rose from 84 +/- 15 to 113 +/- 14 beats/min (mean increase of 29 +/- 8 beats/min) during the exercise. During the home-based training period, the maximum blood pressure was 133 +/- 22 mmHg, and the maximum heart rate was 97 +/- 13 beats/min. CONCLUSIONS: The patients were very careful during their trial outpatient period, as this was their first post-cardiac surgery experience. Consequently, the degree of exercise at home was even more mild than in hospital. Self-measurement of heart rate and blood pressure was feasible. By referring to these measurements, the patients were able to monitor and increase their level of exercise. This post-cardiac surgery rehabilitation program is helpful for early returning to daily life activities.

[Relationship of normal levels of activity of daily living and daily habits among elderly women at home].

PURPOSE: The relationship of activities of daily living (ADL) with daily habits and age was investigated with a focus on the results of measurements of the normal speed (ordinary level: OL) and maximum speed (maximum capacity: MC) in performing items on a functional fitness test. The significance of the measurement of the ordinary level was also discussed. METHODS: The subjects were 69 women, aged 60-90 years old, who participated in a health workshop for the elderly sponsored by a local municipality and who performed at least 4 items on a functional fitness test. Public health nurses asked subjects about habitual life style, subjective health status and degree of satisfaction in daily life. The ADL level was measured using the tests of functional fitness developed by Oida et al and partially revised by ourselves and physical fitness tests (grip strength, sit and reach, and balancing on one leg with opened eyes). OL was measured as the time needed to perform functional fitness items at normal speed, and MC as the time needed when performing these tasks as quickly as possible. RESULTS: All functional fitness items were accomplished significantly faster with MC than OL. Correlation coefficient values between OL and MC were high significant. Age was found to be significantly related to the hand working test (Hand-T) to evaluate dexterity and the rope working test (Rope-T) to evaluate self-care, except with the MC. An analysis of covariance with age as the covariant revealed that, with OL, there were relationships between Hand-T and Rope-T and the item "active at home," and between the zigzag walking (Zigzag-T) and Rope-T and "walking or riding a bicycle to go shopping." With MC, there were relationships between Hand-T and "active at home," and between Zigzag-T and "walking of riding a bicycle to go shopping." Regarding physical capacity, relationships were seen between both hands and "high level of physical fitness" and "walking fast" and grip strength (Left hand), respectively. CONCLUSION: The ADL items measured in the preset study were related to the daily activities of elderly people. As the OL and MC results demonstrated a high correlation and the ADL items related with OL were found to have almost the same link with MC, we conclude that OL is suitable for testing with the advantage of safety. However, we could not explain differences in relationships between measurements and daily activities, pointing to a need for further research. Elderly people must maintain their capacity for ADL to support a good quality of life, and we have demonstrated the utility of measurements that include normal levels of activity as indicators.