INTRODUCTION
In recent years, heart disease has increased considerably, causing a large number of surgical procedures that aim to increase patient survival1. There are several risks and complications of this form of treatment that can interfere in pulmonary capacity and physical performance, reducing the functionality of patients. The decrease in daily activities of life due to prolonged hospitalization can also lead to several neuromuscular, pulmonary, functional and quality of life problems2.
Patients after cardiac surgery tend to have muscle weakness due to lack of movement, loss of physical conditioning, inflammation, use of drugs such as corticosteroids, muscle relaxants, neuromuscular blockers, antibiotics and in the presence of associated neuromuscular syndromes3. This weakness may be associated with decreased walking speed in the postoperative period, with this variable being associated with worse outcomes such as mortality and hospital readmission in other profiles such as hypercapnic heart and respiratory failure4,5.
Gait speed can be assessed using the 10-meter test6. This test can be applied preoperatively, predicting outcomes associated with hospital stay such as length of stay and/or discharge7,8. Changes in the organism with the surgical procedure cause a decline in the patient’s functional activities in the postoperative phase, making walking a complex skill, as gait speed tends to decrease due to the physiological changes that occur such as the reduction of muscle strength9.
Despite these studies that correlate gait speed with the aforementioned outcomes, when we deal with cardiac surgery there is a gap. This answer can be useful for making decisions and directing appropriate intervention to minimize these adverse results. The aim of this study was to verify whether gait speed is associated with the risk of hospital readmission in the postoperative period of coronary artery bypass grafting.