Rehabilitation after cardiothoracic surgeries in Amman: Doctors and Clinics

Cardiac rehabilitation after heart surgery is a supervised medical programme that begins in hospital after the operation and continues for weeks in the outpatient clinic. It combines graded, monitored exercise with patient education, risk-factor modification, psychological support and a review of medication adherence. It is not general fitness training: the exercise is a calculated dose prescribed after your cardiac capacity has been assessed, in the same way a medicine is prescribed.

The programme is used after coronary artery bypass grafting, valve repair or replacement, chest and aortic surgery, after some catheter procedures, and in chronic heart disease. It runs in three phases. Phase one, in hospital, focuses on deep breathing, coughing with a pillow held against the chest, sitting up and early walking, and protecting the breastbone. Phase two is monitored outpatient rehabilitation with ECG and blood pressure supervision, typically two to three sessions a week for six to twelve weeks. Phase three is lifelong maintenance of safe, regular activity.

The content is wider than exercise alone: graded aerobic work at a defined intensity, light resistance training introduced at the right time, breathing and lung-expansion exercises, and education on wound care and sternal precautions during the early weeks, such as not lifting above the permitted limit and not pulling up on the arms to stand. Blood pressure, blood sugar and lipids are brought under control, smoking is stopped completely, diet and salt are adjusted, sleep problems are treated, and returning to work, driving and sexual activity is discussed openly. Depression and anxiety are actively looked for, as both are common after heart surgery and both reduce adherence to treatment.

The limits are clear. Rehabilitation improves exercise capacity and quality of life and reduces readmission, but it does not open a new blockage, does not substitute for medication or cardiology follow-up, and does not restore pumping strength to muscle that was damaged before surgery. It is also not identical for every patient. Exercising alone after heart surgery without assessment and supervision can do harm. Eligibility and exercise intensity are decided by clinical examination and capacity testing, never by reading.