Content area

Abstract

Research into cardiac rehabilitation (CR), a key model for secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease, has evolved since first described in 1927. This review aimed to explore this evolution by identifying CR-related publications from the Web of Science Core Collection and summarizing CR research publication history, trends in publication keywords, and citations over time. A total of 8729 CR publications appeared across 1441 journals (median impact factor: 2.6) and were cited 315,819 times, with over 85% (7455/8729) published in the past two decades. These publications involved contributions from 26,909 authors across 120 countries, despite disproportionate domination by high-income countries. Publication keywords have consistently focused on exercise but have evolved from evaluating clinical events, quality-of-life, and return-to-work outcomes to improving accessibility using digital interventions. However, a broader focus on other cardiovascular risk factors, comorbidities, and various research designs may be needed to modernize CR, particularly in lower-income countries.

Details

Title
A century of cardiac rehabilitation research: Bibliometric review of publication history, keyword trends, and citations
Author
Manandi, Deborah 1 ; Hyun, Karice 2 ; Candelaria, Dion 1 ; Hollings, Matthew 3 ; Tu, Qiang 1 ; Gauci, Sarah 4 ; O’Neil, Adrienne 4 ; Chaseling, Georgia K. 1 ; Zhang, Ling 1 ; Briffa, Tom 5 ; Grace, Sherry L. 6 ; Gallagher, Robyn 1 ; Redfern, Julie 7 

 University of Sydney, Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.1013.3) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 834X) 
 University of Sydney, Sydney School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.1013.3) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 834X); ANZAC Research Institute, Department of Cardiology, Concord Repatriation General Hospital, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.414685.a) (ISNI:0000 0004 0392 3935) 
 University of Sydney, Sydney School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.1013.3) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 834X) 
 Deakin University, IMPACT—The Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation, Food & Mood Centre, School of Medicine, Geelong, Australia (GRID:grid.1021.2) (ISNI:0000 0001 0526 7079) 
 University of Western Australia, School of Population and Global Health, Perth, Australia (GRID:grid.1012.2) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 7910) 
 York University, School of Kinesiology and Health Science, Toronto, Canada (GRID:grid.21100.32) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 9430); University of Toronto, KITE Research Institute, Toronto Rehabilitation & Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada (GRID:grid.17063.33) (ISNI:0000 0001 2157 2938) 
 University of Sydney, Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.1013.3) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 834X); Bond University, Institute for Evidence-Based Healthcare, Gold Coast, Australia (GRID:grid.1033.1) (ISNI:0000 0004 0405 3820); University of New South Wales, The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.1005.4) (ISNI:0000 0004 4902 0432) 
Pages
26
Publication year
2025
Publication date
Dec 2025
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
29482836
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3225849356
Copyright
Copyright Nature Publishing Group Dec 2025