Advances in cardiac rehabilitation: Cardiac rehabilitation after transcatheter aortic valve implantation

Abstract

For more than a decade, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has become a promising treatment modality for patients with severe aortic stenosis and a high surgical risk. To improve exercise capacity and quality of life, cardiac rehabilitation (CR) including physical activity is a well-established treatment for patients after cardiac valve surgery. First studies have shown that CR could also be a helpful tool to maintain independency for activities of daily living and participation in socio-cultural life in patients after TAVI. Strength and balance training are important parts of physical activity in octogenarians and have been investigated in healthy older adults in several studies, but need to be widened and investigated for TAVI patients. Hence, for this older patient group, there are more prospective multicentre studies needed.