Characteristics and correlates of disease-related knowledge and exercise self-efficacy among cardiac patients attending virtual cardiac rehabilitation during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Peru.

Staff did not record which patients were invited, so it is unclear how representative the 240 patients were. The study was done at one centre in Peru, and only patients who completed the program and had internet access were included. Participants had to attend online sessions and were excluded if they had visual or cognitive disorders or severe cardiac or metabolic conditions, so the findings may not apply to more impaired patients. The design did not assess causal inferences, so the changes cannot be shown to be caused by the program. Many comparisons were made, which inflates error rates. The correlations with patient characteristics were low, with coefficients from 0.18 to 0.23. The Spanish exercise self-efficacy scale was not validated, although experts reviewed content validity.

No specific funding was received, and the authors declared no competing interests.

Do not conclude that virtual cardiac rehabilitation caused the gains or that any single team component was responsible. The design did not assess causal inferences, and patients received Zoom-delivered education, physical training, and multidisciplinary team support together.