Effects of Tai Chi Training on Improving Physical Function in Patients With Coronary Heart Diseases

An attempt was made in the present study to examine the effects of Tai Chi training on improving physical function in patients with coronary heart diseases. Participants of this study were 30 male (n = 18) and female (n = 12) patients who had gone through the hospital stay (Phase I) and cardiac rehabilitation program (Phase II) and planned to get involved in a home-based or a long-term exercise program (Phase III) after a heart operation or a cardiac event. Informed consent form and permission from the physicians of the patients as well as from the medical center were obtained before the beginning of the study. An equal number of male (n = 9) and female (n = 6) patients were randomly assigned to an experimental group and a control group. The study lasted 12 weeks and consisted of a pretest, an intervention phase, and a posttest. On the pretest, each participant was required to take physical function tests on leg strength, flexibility, agility, balance and cardiovascular endurance. During the intervention phase, a modified Tai Chi training program was offered by a well-trained Tai Chi instructor to the experimental group under the supervision of an experienced cardiologist at a local medical center and a researcher at a college in the northeast region of the United States. Participants in the control group, however, were not involved in the Tai Chi training program during the same time period. All participants were encouraged to continue their standard cardiac rehabilitation activities and routine care procedures. The intervention phase lasted 12 weeks and included two 1-hour Tai Chi classes per week. During the period of intervention, the physical and health conditions of each participant were closely and regularly checked and monitored by a cardiologist. At the end of the 12-week intervention, a posttest with similar testing procedures to those of the pretest was administered to all participants. A 2 × 2 (group × test) MANOVA with repeated measures on the test was used to examine differences in physical function variables between the two groups. Follow-up tests were conducted on any significant main or interaction effects. The results of the study revealed a significant group × test interaction (p < 0.001). Follow-up analyses indicated that while no group differences in physical function variables existed between the two groups on the pretest, the experimental group was found to have significantly (p < 0.05) better performance on the physical function tests than the control group. The findings of the present study suggest that Tai Chi training enhances physical function in patients with coronary heart diseases and is an effective cardiac rehabilitation exercise alternative to the traditional ones.