Adherence of females to Fitcor’s cardiopulmonary and metabolic rehabilitation program during 34 years

Abstract

Introduction: In recent decades the number of deaths from heart disease among women in Brazil has increased a lot considerably, however those who accumulate more risk factors do not practice physical exercises. Objective: to investigate the adherence behavior of women aged between 12 and 80 years, to a specialized cardiac prevention and rehabilitation program (CPRP). Method: This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out in a clinic specialized in cardiology diagnosis and CPRP between 1972 and 2006. Patients were separated into two groups, prevention (PG) and rehabilitation (RG) after physical evaluation and diagnosis. Both groups of women were separated by age and by the date of beginning CPRP. Results: Based on the entry diagnosis in the records of 958 women who attended the CPRP, we identified that 655 of them were in the prevention group (PG) and 303 in the rehabilitation group (PG). In both groups, the adherence to the program decreased with advancing age and worsening of risk factors. Conclusions: Contrary to the increase on statistics of women victims of cardiovascular diseases in Brazil, the number of those who seek CPRP through physical exercises has decreased and, what is worse, the number or places that facilitate women’s access to this type of intervention has also decreased.