Participation in Cardiac Rehabilitation Is Low Overall

TUESDAY, June 28, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Participation in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is low overall, and lower among Asian, Black, and Hispanic individuals compared with Whites, according to a study published online June 22 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Joshua Garfein, M.P.H., from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and colleagues identified 107,199 individuals with a CR-qualifying diagnosis between Jan. 1, 2016, and Dec. 31, 2018, and examined racial/ethnic differences in CR participation and how household income modifies these associations

The researchers found that 26.5 percent of the participants attended one or more CR sessions. The probability of attending CR was 31, 19, and 43 percent lower for Asian, Black, and Hispanic individuals, respectively, than White individuals, after adjustment. Asian, Black, and Hispanic individuals also had significantly longer time to CR attendance. Significant differences were seen in the associations between race or ethnicity and CR attendance across household income categories; at all incomes, Asian, Black, and Hispanic individuals were less likely to attend CR.

"This work highlights critical disparities by race and ethnicity, exacerbated by income, and missed opportunities in disadvantaged individuals to achieve the secondary prevention and health benefits of CR," the authors write.

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