Background: Coronary heart disease (CHD) persists as the leading cause of death worldwide. Cardiovascular prevention and rehabilitation (CVPR) has an interdisciplinary focus, and includes not only in physiological components, but it also addresses psycho-social factors.
Methods: The study analysed the Spanish psycho-social data collected during the EUROACTION study. In Spain, two hospitals were randomised in the Valencia community. Coronary patients were prospectively and consecutively identified in both hospitals. The intervention hospital carried out a 16-week CVPR programme, which aimed to assess illness perceptions and establish healthy behaviours in patients and their partners.
Results: Illness perceptions were significantly and inversely associated with anxiety and depression. Low levels of anxiety were associated with better self-management of total cholesterol (p = 0.004) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (p = 0.004). There was concordance at one year among patients and partners who participated in the programme related to anxiety (p < 0.001), fruit consumption (p < 0.001), and vegetable consumption (p < 0.001).
Conclusions: The EUROACTION study emphasised the importance of assessing psycho-social factors in a CVPR programme and the inclusion of family as support in patients' changes in behaviour.
Keywords: anxiety; cardiovascular prevention; depression; illness perception; interdisciplinary; nurse-coordinated programme.