Safety and efficacy of cardiac rehabilitation for patients with continuous flow left ventricular assist devices.

Background: Despite the increasing use of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) in terminal heart failure, cardiac rehabilitation protocols have not yet been documented in larger LVAD patient cohorts. The aim of this study was to investigate safety and efficacy of exercise training during a rehabilitation programme after post-operative discharge of LVAD patients.

Methods: Rehabilitation data obtained between 2010-2012 from 41 LVAD patients (mean age 54.