worldwide.1 In fact, the prevalence of CVD is on the rise as a
function of increased longevity and the mounting effects of
cardiac risk factors that typically accumulate over a lifetime.
Outpatient cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs offer a costeffective,
multidisciplinary, comprehensive approach to address
these risk factors and to restore individuals to their optimal
physiological, psychosocial, nutritional, and functional status.2–6
Thus, the benefits of CR extend well beyond the cardiovascular
system, positively affecting an individual’s overall health status.
These benefits may be particularly important to certain CVD
cohorts such as elderly patients who are more likely to present
with greater functional limitations and frailty. Additionally,
outpatient CR has been shown to dramatically reduce morbidity
and mortality by nearly 25% compared with usual care.