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Global Health Econ Sustain Utilizing REDCap in a cardiac rehabilitation service

Table 3. Medications used by the patients among patients (Table 3). The high consumption of
Medications Number of patients antihypertensive drugs is consistent with the high rate of
individuals diagnosed with SAH. The Brazilian Guideline
Antihypertensives 63 (84.0) for Cardiovascular Rehabilitation (De Carvalho et al., 2020)
Anticoagulants 46 (61.3) mentions the need for medication adjustments in view of
Antiplatelet 34 (45.3) the assimilation of physical training in CR. It is important
Diuretics 44 (58.7) to monitor the reduction, increase, or even suspension of
some medications, which must always be optimized for the
Antiarrhythmics 13 (17.3) safe practice of physical exercises.
Beta-blockers 49 (65.3)
The functional tests performed by the patients included
Antidepressants 12 (16.0) the 6-min walk test (6MWT), the Timed Up and Go
Anxiolytics 5 (6.7) (TUG) test, and the 30-s Sit and Stand test (Table 4). The
Statins 53 (70.7) 6MWT assesses the submaximal functional capacity, with
ACE inhibitors 17 (22.7) participants in this study covering an average distance of
Angiotensin receptor blockers 8 (10.7) 448.53 ± 99.06 meters. Studies indicate that distances above
Antianginal 32 (42.7) 300 meters are associated with a lower risk of mortality
Antidiabetics 28 (37.3) (Arslan et al., 2007). Regarding TUG, participants took
Others 43 (57.3) an average duration of 9.27 ± 3.19 s to complete the test,
indicating that these patients were not at risk of falling, as the
Note: Values are expressed in absolute (n) and relative (%) numbers. literature suggests a cutoff point of 10 s (Karuka et al., [s.d.]).
Abbreviation: ACE: Angiotensin-converting enzyme.
As for the 30-s Sit and Stand test, which assesses lower limb
Table 4. Initial physical examination of patients strength, participants completed an average of 9.54 ± 2.74
repetitions. This variable is analyzed considering the age and
Examinations Results gender of the participant (Jones et al., 1999). A follow-up
Weight (kilograms) 79.49±14.59 comparison study of these data is being designed.
Height (inches) 164.28±7.18 The ergometric test (ET) is considered the gold standard
Heated extremities (n [%]) 63 (84.0) for assessing the maximum exercise capacity of patients
LL edema (n [%]) 20 (26.7) and is used for exercise prescription (Herdy et al., [s.d.]).
Functional tests Therefore, failure to perform the test was considered a
6MWT (m) 448.53±99.06 relative exclusion condition, as it could indicate that the
patient would not be able to participate in rehabilitation
TUG (s) 9.27±3.19 in the conventional way, requiring individualized or
Sit and Stand (times) 9.54±2.74 specialized physical therapy care in the presence of
Note: Values expressed as mean±standard deviation (SD) unless limitations (e.g., traumatological or neurological physical
otherwise specified. Abbreviations: 6MWT: Six-min walk test; therapy). In these cases, patients were referred to specialized
LL: Lower limbs; TUG: Timed up and go test.
services. For exercise prescription in our center, the target
HR between 60% and 80% of the maximum HR was used
Burden of Disease 2019 (Nascimento et al., 2022) indicate (Herdy et al., [s.d.]).
that SAH is the primary risk factor for CVD. SAH, along
with dyslipidemia, accounts for more than 75% of the We acknowledge some limitations of the study, including
burden of CVD in the analyzed countries, including Brazil. the need for patient consent to use the data, which resulted
In addition, dyslipidemia has demonstrated an increasing in the risk of not including all patients in the continuity of
trend in recent years in several countries (Gaalema et al., the work. However, we made efforts to inform and orient
2019; Nascimento et al., 2022). On the other hand, 39% patients about the importance of the study to minimize
of patients in our study reported a history of smoking, this risk. In addition, as our center employs several
with only one reporting current smoking, which is physiotherapists, variations in the evaluations may occur,
consistent with data from the Global Burden of Disease although these differences are mitigated by the initial
2019, indicating a decrease in smoking-related mortality training provided to professionals. Finally, it is important
to note that this study only focuses on one cardiovascular
(Nascimento et al., 2022).
rehabilitation center, which may limit the generalizability
Regarding medication use, antihypertensives, beta- of its results. However, this limitation is justified by the
blockers, and statins had the highest prevalence of use scarcity of such programs.

Volume 2 Issue 1 (2024) 5 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.1755