Treatment of Congestive Heart Failure in Outpatient Physical
Therapy Settings (Recorded Webinar)
Presented by James Carlson
12-Month Subscription
Unlimited access to:
- Thousands of CE Courses
- Patient Education
- Home Exercise Program
- And more
Non-Financial: James Carlson has no competing non-financial interests or relationships with regard to the content presented in this course.
This course is a recording of a previously hosted live webinar event. Polling and question submission features are not available for this recording. Format and structure may differ from standard MedBridge courses.
Congestive heart failure is one of the leading causes of hospital admission, morbidity, and mortality. Incidence of and risk for frailty is elevated in heart failure patients. Understanding medical complexity can be daunting and lead many clinicians to undertreat out of fear of adverse events. Physical therapists play a critical role in treatment of heart failure patients. This course aims to improve understanding of medical complexity, medical management, clinical assessment, and effective interventions to improve clinical outcomes and reduce morbidity and mortality for heart failure patients.
Meet your instructor
James Carlson
Mr. Carlson received a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Physiology (1996) and his Masters in Physical Therapy (1999) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has delivered numerous CE courses on cardiopulmonary rehabilitation for the WPTA and University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. In 2015, he instructed a course…
Chapters & learning objectives
1. Pathophysiology and Medical Management
The ability to understand the pathophysiology and medical management of systolic and diastolic heart failure is essential to improve clinical confidence for assessment and treatment. This chapter will provide the clinician with the ability to understand similarities, differences, and considerations for each type of heart failure.
2. Decompensated Heart Failure
Hospital re-admission rates for heart failure are nearly 60% within 6 months of discharge. Each exacerbation increases frailty risk and associated morbidity and mortality. In addition, the decompensated state impedes successful rehab intervention. This chapter will provide the clinician with the ability to both recognize and determine severity of decompensation, which will improve clinical decision making and support medical management.
3. Exercise Response in Heart Failure
Hemodynamic response to exercise varies across the spectrum of heart failure and is influenced by many factors such as age, medications and comorbidities. This chapter will provide the clinician with the ability to interpret normal and abnormal hemodynamic response to exercise to improve clinical competence for treatment planning.
4. Clinical Assessment and Treatment
Appropriate evaluation of a patient with congestive heart failure is essential for risk stratification, and design and implementation of an appropriate treatment plan. This chapter will provide a blueprint for assessment and risk stratification to guide clinical decision making and treatment planning.
5. Using Diagnostic Testing for Clinical Decision-Making
Stress testing, echocardiography, nuclear imaging, ECG, and pulmonary function testing are all common diagnostic tests for patients with congestive heart failure. Each provides valuable clinical information. This chapter aims to provide the clinician with the capacity to interpret medical diagnostic tests for the purpose of risk stratification and clinical decision-making.
6. Case Studies
Case studies will be utilized to provide examples of common patient presentations and treatment considerations. These clinical scenarios will foster critical thinking and decision-making for various severities of heart failure to reinforce the content from prior chapters.