Effect of intense lifestyle modification and cardiac rehabilitation on psychosocial cardiovascular disease risk factors and quality of life.

This study examined the effect of the Ornish Program for Reversing Heart Disease and cardiac rehabilitation (CR) on psychosocial risk factors and quality of life in patients with confirmed coronary artery disease. Participants had previously undergone a revascularization procedure. The 84 patients self-selected to participate in the Ornish Program for Reversing Heart Disease (n = 507 28), CR (n = 28), or a control group (n = 28).

Cardiovascular risk reductions associated with aggressive lifestyle modification and cardiac rehabilitation.

Background: Patients who have been treated for coronary heart disease can enroll in traditional cardiac rehabilitation, the Ornish Program, or no rehabilitation at all. No study has compared the impact of each on cardiovascular disease risk (CVD) factors.

Methods: The current study compared CVD risk changes in post coronary artery bypass graft or percutaneous coronary intervention procedure patients who participated in the Ornish Heart Disease Reversing Program, a traditional cardiac rehabilitation, and a control group that received no formal cardiac risk-reduction program.