This symposium dealt with contemporary issues and concerns in cardiac rehabilitation. Selected topics included: the potential of exercise training to enhance coronary collateral circulation; safety and efficacy of high intensity training; influence of beta-blocking agents on exercise prescription and trainability; value of physical conditioning in patients with left ventricular dysfunction or cardiac transplantation; and the effect of exercise on serum lipids and lipoproteins. Each article attempted to assimilate the physiologically germane literature in an area and provide the reader with associated clinical and practical implications.