No time to rest

Don't just lie down after heart surgery, cardiologists say. They tell Wang Hongyi in Shanghai that moderate exercise will speed recovery.

Shanghai businessman Zheng Yongchao looks fit and refreshed upon returning from his trip to Sanya on tropical Hainan Island. Few would suspect that the 45-year-old had suffered a serious heart attack and had a surgery just three months ago. What made him recover so quickly, Zheng says, was the two-month-long cardiac rehabilitation program he took up after surgery. Under professional supervision, such rehab programs can help patients like Zheng recover from heart surgery and even procedures, such as stenting and angioplasty, says Wang Taoli, a cardiac rehabilitation doctor with Shanghai Delta Hospital and Clinics.

Under this comprehensive approach, doctors provide education and counseling services and help heart patients establish physical training plans, improve their physical fitness and lower the risk of future heart problems, Wang explains.