Give the introduction to Cardiac rehabilitation?

Cardiac rehabilitation services are comprehensive, long-term programs involving medical evaluation, prescribed exercise, cardiac risk factor modification, education, and counselling. These programs are designed to limit the physiologic and psychological effects of cardiac illness, reduce the risk for sudden death or reinfarction, control cardiac symptoms, stabilize or reverse the atherosclerotic process, and enhance the psychosocial and vocational status of selected patients.

The interventions involve two parallel applications: (1) exercise training, and (2) education, counselling, and behavioural interventions. Cardiac rehabilitation is a continuous process that has been arbitrarily divided into three phases. It begins as soon as possible after a cardiovascular event, usually within 24 to 48 hours, and continues as Phase I of the process while the patient is in the hospital. Phase II consists of planned cardiac rehabilitation programs that arc generally administered during the six months following discharge from the hospital. This phase generally involves the prescription of a supervised, planned program to increase the functional capacity of the patient to allow the individual to resume normal life activities. The patient's progress is monitored at appropriate times by means of standard cardiac function tests. Phase III consists of a lifelong program committed to encourage exercise and a healthful lifestyle to minimize recurrence of cardiac problems.