The influence of cardiac rehabilitation programme modified with resistance training elements on strength and endurance fitness level in patients early after acute coronary syndrome Ocena efektów treningu fizycznego z zastosowaniem dodatkowego obciążenia kończyn w trakcie wczesnej rehabilitacji pacjentów po leczonym interwencyjnie ostrym zespole wieńcowym

Introduction. We aimed to investigate the effects of modified cardiac rehabilitation programme on functional fitness level. We modified the programme with the elements of resistance training relied on use of the ankle and wrist weights (1, 0.5 kg each). Material and methods. The study was performed on 40 patients in 2–3 weeks following acute coronary syndrome (ACS), after they underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Patients were divided in to two groups: two groups of 20 patients each: control group with standard training and experimental group with elements of resistance training. An analysis of the data was performed before and after 18-session rehabilitation programme. The study was performed only in patients at moderate risk of cardiac disease according to American College of Sports Medicine 8 th edition risk stratification. Results. Contemporary standard of cardiac rehabilitation provided to the patients post-ACS improved significantly (p < 0.05) the endurance parameters assessed with the 6-min walking test (from 517.75 ± 57.27 to 581 ± 94.04 m for the standard rehabilitation and from 523.00 ± 45.43 to 598.47 ± 57.30 m for modified programme with the elements of resistance). The strength of the arms and legs assessed with the dynamometry improved significantly with more pronounced improvement in the group with resistance training elements than in the standard rehabilitation group (from 33.10 ± 8.35 to 42.65 ± 11.90 kg and from 127.00 ± 25.49 to 154.40 ± 31.86 kg, respectively; p < 0.05). The strength endurance assessed with the SFT for the legs increased significantly in both groups. Conclusions. Early-phase cardiac rehabilitation extended with the elements of resistance training results in greater improvement, especially in the elements of strength.