Change in patient nutritional knowledge following coronary artery bypass graft surgery

Introduction In order to reduce coronary artery disease (CAD) risk, moderate physical activity should be combined with other lifestyle modifications, such as proper nutrition, to have a dramatic impact. This necessitates educational and preventative measures, which should begin in childhood and continue throughout life. Aim The aim of this study was to measure the change in nutrition knowledge of coronary artery bypass graft patients by implementation of a lifestyle intervention programme. Methods The Hawkes and Nowak Nutrition Knowledge Questionnaire (1998) was administered to 18 coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) patients to assess the change in nutrition knowledge. Results Significant improvements were noted in the nutrition knowledge score (18.9 ± 3.4–23.2 ± 4.5; p = 0.000). Although all components measured exhibited improvements in knowledge, cholesterol reduction knowledge (5.3 ± 1.8–7.2 ± 1.8; p = 0.0066), low fat food knowledge (3.8 ± 2.3–5.1 ± 2.7; p = 0.011) and high fibre food knowledge (4.1 ± 1.4–4.7 ± 1.1; p = 0.022) exhibited the highest and most significant improvements. Conclusion Notably, these significant improvements in nutrition knowledge points toward effective education being delivered during the intervention. Cardiac rehabilitation has proved to be effective in changing lifestyle habits in a holistic way and this study further shows an improvement in nutritional knowledge based on sound educational principles.