Activity and Heart Rate-based Measures for Outpatient Cardiac Rehabilitation

Abstract

Summary Objectives: Derive activity and heart rate (HR) monitor-based clinically relevant measures for outpatient cardiac rehabilitation (CR). Methods: We are currently collecting activity/ ECG data from patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation over duration of six weeks. From these data sets, we a) derive various measures which can be used in assessing home-based CR patients remotely and b) investigate the usefulness of continuous ambulatory HR and heart rate variability (HRV) for various core components of CR. Results: The information provided by these measures is interpreted according to the CR guidelines framework by American Association of Cardiovascular and Pul - monary Rehabilitation (AACVPR), thus showing how these tools can be used in assessing the progress of patients’ condition. The usefulness and significance of these measures from a health care professional perspective is also presented by evaluating them against the existing hospital-based measures through examples. Conclusions: Hospital-based CR programs, despite their clinical benefits are severely under-utilized and resource-demanding. Ambulatory monitoring technologies, which provide a means for continuous physiological monitoring of patients at home compared to hospital-based tools, can enable home-based CR. The clinically relevant measures derived from these tools not only reflect patients´ condition in a similar way as conventional tools but also show the continuous status of functional capacity (FC).