QUALITY OF LIFE, EXERCISE CAPACITY AND MUSCLE STRENGTH IN CORONARY PATIENTS COMPARED WITH THE GENERAL POPULATION IN CHILE

P. Seron¹, M.-J. Oliveros¹, G.N. Marzuca-Nassr¹, C. Román², M. Galvez³, G. Latin⁴, R. Navarro⁵, J.-P. Molina⁶, T. Marileo⁷, P. Sepulveda¹, S. Grace^8,9,10

Background: Ischemic heart disease is the second leading cause of disability-adjusted life years affecting functionality and quality of life.

Purpose: This report aims to compare health-related quality of life (HRQL), exercise capacity and muscle strength in coronary artery disease patients participating in Cardiac Rehabilitation in relation to the general population in Chile.

Methods: Baseline data from participants recruited into a randomized, multi-center, non-inferiority clinical trial conducted in Chile (Hybrid Cardiac Rehabilitation Trial, HYCARET) was used. The EuroQol-5 dimensions (EQ-5D) questionnaire, Six Minute Walk Test (6MWT), and grip strength assessed by dynamometer were applied.  Comparative parameters were obtained from the Social Valuation of EQ-5D Health States in Chile for HRQL, from references values in healthy subjects in Chile for 6MWT, and from data obtained in the Chilean sample of the PURE Study for grip strength. Test statistics for one-sample proportions and means, were used to compare sample estimates to population values in the same age range and gender.

Results: 204 participants have been recruited in HYCARET between May 2019 and February 2020 (average age=58.6+9.9 years; 24.51% female; 69.12 revascularized). The most impacted HRQL dimensions were pain/discomfort (72.4% affected) and anxiety/depression (43.75%), proportions greater than those of the general population in Chile (39.6%, p<0.0001 and 30.9%, p<0.0001, respectively). Regarding exercise capacity, HYCARET participants walked on average 480.1+112 meters in 6 minutes, which was less than the healthy population who walked 562.5+29.7 meters (p<0.0001). Finally, HYCARET female participants had on average more muscle strength than the general population (20.1±6.15 vs 17.4+6.2 Kg, p<0.005) while in male there were no differences.

Conclusion(s): Quality of life and exercise capacity are very affected in the Chilean population with coronary artery disease when compared with the general population, at the same age strata and sex. However, the muscle strength in the sample studied was not lower than the data available from the general population. 

Implications: Having this comparative data allows to visualize the functional gaps of coronary patients and to reinforce that rehabilitation interventions are necessary. Additionally, this on-going clinical trial will determine whether participation in a hybrid model of cardiac rehabilitation can improve these key outcomes, and even bring them closer to healthy population values.

Funding, acknowledgements: Fondecyt Grant N° 1181734, financed by the National Agency for Research and Development (ANID), Chile

Keywords: Coronary patients, Quality of life, exercise capacity

Topic: Cardiorespiratory

Did this work require ethics approval? Yes

Institution: Universidad de La Frontera

Committee: Comité Ético Científico de la Universidad de La Frontera

Ethics number: Acta N° 032_18