Book excerpt: AACVPR Cardiac Rehabilitation Resource Manual is the companion text to Guidelines for Cardiac Rehabilitation and Secondary Prevention Programs. It complements and expands on the guidelines book by providing additional background material on key topics, and it presents new material concerning cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention. AACVPR Cardiac Rehabilitation Resource Manual combines reference-based data with practical information from the field. It applies current position statements, recommendations, and scientific knowledge from medical and scientific literature to aid in designing and developing safe, effective, and comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation programs. Useful for practitioners as well as students and instructors who are learning and teaching key concepts, AACVPR Cardiac Rehabilitation Resource Manual provides strong background support to topics addressed in the guidelines, such as risk factors for coronary heart disease, secondary prevention, psychosocial issues, and patients with special considerations. In addition, each chapter opens with a cross-reference box so that readers know where to reference the topic in the guidelines book. In addition to supporting information for the guidelines, the manual contains new information to help round out cardio programs. Topics include the atherosclerotic disease process, cardiovascular and exercise physiology, exercise prescription, and the electrocardiogram. AACVPR Cardiac Rehabilitation Resource Manual is divided into three parts. Part I examines the development and prevention of coronary artery disease, including reduction of risk factors, psychosocial issues and strategies, and contemporary procedures for revascularization. Part II delineates the role of exercise in heart disease, including the exercise and coronary artery disease connection, cardiovascular and exercise physiology, and exercise prescription. Part III focuses on special considerations, including heart disease as it relates to women and to the elderly and considerations for people with diabetes, chronic heart failure, and heart transplants. AACVPR Cardiac Rehabilitation Resource Manual contains pertinent, detailed information on the topics involved in contemporary cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention of coronary artery disease. Teamed with Guidelines for Cardiac Rehabilitation and Secondary Prevention Programs, the book provides professionals and students with the full range of guidelines and background materials needed for teaching and understanding the key issues in cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention.