Reduction in Fear of Physical Activity Among Older Persons With Coronary Artery Disease by Physical Therapist–Assisted Exercise: A Randomized Trial

Cardiovascular diseases remain the number one global concern for morbidity and mortality. Experience of angina with activity or at rest in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) can induce kinesiophobia (fear of movement).1 In this group of patients, kinesiophobia, often underestimated, may not be irrational but intricately connected with causing self-harm from an adverse cardiac event.2 Kinesiophobia, along with anxiety and depression, which are commonly reported in older adults with cardiovascular diseases, can negatively impact self-efficacy and engagement in physical activity and exercise.