The Effect of Acute Mobility Training on Independence in a Post-Cardiac Arrest
Document Type
Poster
Start Date
28-4-2026 12:00 PM
End Date
28-4-2026 2:00 PM
Description
Introduction: Cardiac arrest is a major cause of death in the United States. Complications of cardiac arrest include respiratory failure and damaged brain tissue, making ICU treatment commonplace in this population. As prolonged bed rest contributes to poor outcomes, it becomes imperative to maximize recovery with physical therapy in this population. Though evidence for improved outcomes from acute care physical therapy exists, there is limited research on outcomes for patients with multiple new diagnoses following cardiac arrest.
Purpose: The purpose of this case report is to outline the care provided for a post-cardiac arrest patient with complications from anoxic brain injury and acute respiratory failure and to describe the impact of functional mobility training on patient outcomes in the acute care setting.
Methods: The patient received physical therapy in the form of bed mobility, balance training, and transfer training over the course of 10 sessions. The patient was assessed for level of assistance needed, duration of activity, and degree of balance impairment with functional mobility.
Results: The patient receiving functional mobility training in the acute setting saw improvements in independence with bed mobility, seated balance, and transfers across the 10 treatment sessions. There was not a significant change in duration of upright activity across the treatment window.
Discussion: This report describes the improvements made in functional mobility and independence from physical therapy intervention in the acute setting. While this report demonstrates that the patient increased independence from evaluation, limitations from a lack of standardized outcome measures limit the confidence in the degree of significant improvement.
Recommended Citation
Roussel, Adam, "The Effect of Acute Mobility Training on Independence in a Post-Cardiac Arrest" (2026). School of Allied Health Professions Research Day. 2.
https://digitalscholar.lsuhsc.edu/ahrd/2026/posters/2
The Effect of Acute Mobility Training on Independence in a Post-Cardiac Arrest
Introduction: Cardiac arrest is a major cause of death in the United States. Complications of cardiac arrest include respiratory failure and damaged brain tissue, making ICU treatment commonplace in this population. As prolonged bed rest contributes to poor outcomes, it becomes imperative to maximize recovery with physical therapy in this population. Though evidence for improved outcomes from acute care physical therapy exists, there is limited research on outcomes for patients with multiple new diagnoses following cardiac arrest.
Purpose: The purpose of this case report is to outline the care provided for a post-cardiac arrest patient with complications from anoxic brain injury and acute respiratory failure and to describe the impact of functional mobility training on patient outcomes in the acute care setting.
Methods: The patient received physical therapy in the form of bed mobility, balance training, and transfer training over the course of 10 sessions. The patient was assessed for level of assistance needed, duration of activity, and degree of balance impairment with functional mobility.
Results: The patient receiving functional mobility training in the acute setting saw improvements in independence with bed mobility, seated balance, and transfers across the 10 treatment sessions. There was not a significant change in duration of upright activity across the treatment window.
Discussion: This report describes the improvements made in functional mobility and independence from physical therapy intervention in the acute setting. While this report demonstrates that the patient increased independence from evaluation, limitations from a lack of standardized outcome measures limit the confidence in the degree of significant improvement.