Women’s Cardiac Rehabilitation Barriers: Results of the International Council of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation’s First Global Assessment
Year: 2023
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs are underutilized globally, especially by women. In this study we investigated sex differences in CR barriers across all world regions, to our knowledge for the first time, the characteristics associated with greater barriers in women, and women's greatest barriers according to enrollment status. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, the English, Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Portuguese, or Korean versions of the Cardiac Rehabilitation Barriers Scale was administered to CR-indicated patients globally via Qualtrics from October 2021 to March 2023. Members of the International Council of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation community facilitated participant recruitment. Mitigation strategies were provided and rated. RESULTS: Participants were 2163 patients from 16 countries across all 6 World Health Organization regions; 916 (42.3%) were women. Women did not report significantly greater total barriers overall, but did in 2 regions (Americas, Western Pacific) and men in 1 (Eastern Mediterranean; all P < 0.001). Women's barriers were greatest in the Western Pacific (2.6 ± 0.4/5) and South East Asian (2.5 ± 0.9) regions (P < 0.001), with lack of CR awareness as the greatest barrier in both. Women who were unemployed reported significantly greater barriers than those not (P < 0.001). Among nonenrolled referred women, the greatest barriers were not knowing about CR, not being contacted by the program, cost, and finding exercise tiring or painful. Among enrolled women, the greatest barriers to session adherence were distance, transportation, and family responsibilities. Mitigation strategies were rated as very helpful (4.2 ± 0.7/5). CONCLUSIONS: CR barriers-men's and women's-vary significantly according to region, necessitating tailored approaches to mitigation. Efforts should be made to mitigate unemployed women's barriers in particular.
Source: Canadian Journal of Cardiology
Authors: Gabriela Lima de Melo Ghisi, Won-Seok Kim, Seungwoo Cha, Raghdah Aljehani, Mayara Moura Alves Cruz, Luiz Carlos Marques Vanderlei, Garyfallia Pepera, Xia Liu, Zhimin Xu, Lela Maskhulia, Elio Venturini, Hung-Jui Chuang, Danielle Gomes Pereira, Patricia Fernandes Trevizan, Evangelia Kouidi, Ladislav Batalik, Mahdieh Ghanbari Firoozabadi, Ivana Burazor, Mariya Prakash Jiandani, Ling Zhang, Nidal Tourkmani, Sherry L. Grace
Institutions: University Health Network, University of Toronto, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, King Abdullah Medical City, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), University of Thessaly, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, XinHua Hospital, Tbilisi State Medical University, National Taiwan University Hospital, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, University Hospital Brno, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, University of Belgrade, King Edward Memorial Hospital and Seth G.S. Medical College, The University of Sydney, York University
Language: English
Subfield: Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,520
OpenAlex ID: W4387002908