Cardiac rehabilitation, secondary prevention or chronic disease management? Do we need a name change?

Cardiac rehabilitation, secondary prevention and chronic disease management have similarities in their aim to improve the health outcomes of patients living with chronic disease, but in terms of capturing current policy attention, that is where the similarity ends. Chronic disease management (CDM) is higher profile in terms of UK national policy than cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention. Chronic diseases such as diabetes and asthma appear to be more frequently mentioned than coronary conditions in literature concerning CDM [1] despite coronary heart disease (CHD) being an enduring condition which clearly fits the criteria for chronic disease. This curious anomaly may exist because of arbitrary boundaries between these different terminologies. It may result in serious disadvantages for patients suffering from CHD and therefore warrants discussion