The impact of rehabilitation on limb circumferences in patients after cardiac surgery

Aim: The aim of the study was to analyze limb circumferences in patients after coronary artery bypass grafting and minor thoracotomy. Materials and Methods: The study group consisted of 144 patients who underwent cardiac surgery, and were subjected to physiotherapy for 3 to 5 weeks at the Cardiac Rehabilitation Department of the State Medical Institute of the Ministry of Interior and Administration in Warsaw. The rehabilitation included respiratory exercises and active free exercises in positions depending on the week of rehabilitation and the patient’s capabilities, walking training from Monday to Saturday educational sessions regarding physical effort, exercise possibilities, their justification and wound care. Before and after the therapy, measurements of the circumferences of the upper and lower limbs were taken. The Bioethical Commission of the Hospital gave consent to conduct the research. Results: The average circumference of the left leg in the study group decreased by 2.493 cm, while the circumference of the right leg decreased by 2.963. The average circumference of the upper limb decreased by 5.33 cm. A weak correlation was found between the duration of the rehabilitation stay and the change in the circumference of the lower limbs (correlation coefficient r = -0.10; p = 0.227) and upper limbs (correlation coefficient r = -0.13; p = 0.744). Conclusions: The implementation of cardiac rehabilitation in patients after cardiac surgery had a weak impact on the reduction of the upper and lower limbs circumferences.