Natural menopause resulting in the decline in endogenous estrogen concentrations is responsible for an increased risk of coronary heart disease in postmenopausal women. The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of a 6-month Tai Chi exercise program on cardiovascular risk factors and quality of life in post-menopausal women.

A quasi-experimental design with pretest and posttest measures was used. The participants in the study, 29 women in the Tai Chi group and 31 in the control group, were enrolled for 6 months.

After 6 months of Tai Chi exercise, total cholesterol (M=213 to 185), LDL-cholesterol (M=135 to 128), and their 10 yr cardiovascular disease risk (M=2.62 to 2.27) had improved significantly for the Tai Chi participants compared to the control group. Total scores for quality of life along with the sub-dimensions of health perception and mental functioning were also significantly higher in the Tai Chi participants.

Tai Chi exercise favorably affected cardiovascular health and quality of life in post-menopausal women after 6 months. Additional rigorous studies are needed to examine long term effects on the prevention of cardiovascular disease in this population.

The study was done to compare quality of life by gender, and to identify factors which explain quality of life in individuals with coronary artery disease.

For the survey, 91 individuals (53 men and 38 women) agreed to participate in the study. Cardiovascular risk factors, systolic blood pressure, body mass index, total cholesterol, triglyceride, high density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol, health behavior as well as quality of life, were measured. Descriptive statistics, t-test, correlation and hierarchical multiple regression with SPSS WIN 12.0 were used to analyze the data.

Significant gender differences were found for education, smoking status, chronic disease, perceived health status, and quality of life within sub-dimensions. Hierarchical regression analysis showed gender (men), age, perceived health status, cardiovascular risk scores, and health behaviors together explained 40.2% (adjusted R²) of variance in quality of life.

As the factors explaining quality of life in individuals with coronary artery disease have been identified as gender (men), age, perceived health status, and health behaviors, health promotion programs designed for this population should focus on these factors for effective behavioral modification, and consequent improvement in quality of life.