Original Articles
Women’s and Men’s Exercise Adherence After a Cardiac Event: Does Age Make a Difference?
Research in Gerontological Nursing
Vol. 3 No. 1 January 2010
By Mary A. Dolansky, PhD, RN; Beth Stepanczuk, BA; Jacqueline M. Charvat, MS; Shirley M. Moore, PhD, RN, FAAN
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this secondary analysis was to determine whether age
affects women’s and men’s exercise adherence after a cardiac event.
In a convenience sample of 248 adults ages 38 to 86 who had a cardiac event,
exercise adherence (three exercise sessions per week) was compared between men
and women in three age groups (younger than 60, 61 to 70, and older than 70).
Exercise patterns were recorded by heart rate monitors worn during exercise. No
differences were found in adherence between the age groups for women; older men
were nonadherent sooner than younger men when controlling for fitness level,
pain, comorbidity, self-efficacy, depressed mood, and social support. Exercise
adherence after a cardiac event was higher for younger men compared with older
men. For all age groups, less than 37% of the total sample adhered to a
three-times-per-week exercise regimen after 1 year, suggesting that
interventions to maintain exercise adherence are needed.
AUTHORS
Dr. Dolansky is Assistant Professor, Ms. Charvat is Project Director,
and Dr. Moore is Edward J. & Louise Mellen Professor of Nursing and
Associate Dean for Research, Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing, and Ms.
Stepanczuk is a medical student, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland,
Ohio.
The authors disclose that they have no significant financial interests
in any product or class of products discussed directly or indirectly in this
activity. This study was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH),
R01-NR04704; Beth Stepanczuk was a Medical Student Training in Aging Research
(MSTAR) Program Scholar funded by the American Federation of Aging Research
(AFAR); and Dr. Dolansky was a Multidisciplinary Clinical Research Fellow
funded by grant KL2RR024990 from the National Center for Research Resources
(NCRR), a component of the NIH and NIH Roadmap for Medical Research. The
contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do
not necessarily represent the official view of NCRR, AFAR, or NIH.
Address correspondence to Mary A. Dolansky, PhD, RN, Assistant
Professor, Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing, Case Western Reserve
University, 10900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106; e-mail:
Mary.dolansky@case.edu.
Received: July 29, 2008; Accepted: March 17, 2009; Posted: July 31, 2009
doi:10.3928/19404921-20090706-03
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