Functional status improvement in the elderly following coronary artery bypass graft.

This study assessed functional status changes among elderly persons (aged 65+) during the first 2 years following an elective coronary artery bypass graft. Physical functional status increased 39.1% from baseline to 1 year and 2.1% from 1 to 2 years. Role functioning increased 42.7% at 1 year and slightly decreased by 2.1% from 1 to 2 years postsurgery. From baseline to 1 year, female patients nearly doubled the percent gain of men for both Physical Function (.3% vs +33.9%, respectively) and Role Function (+62.0% vs +37.8%, respectively). Physical Function scores continued to increase from 1 to 2 years for women (+9.5%) compared to men (+0.7%). These findings suggest that elderly persons can expect postsurgical functional status to increase steadily during the first 2 years after surgery.