Effect of Nurse-Led Nutrition Education on Clinical Outcomes and Dietary Compliance in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Dietary adherence is essential for secondary prevention after percutaneous coronary intervention, yet sustained lifestyle change remains challenging for many patients with coronary artery disease. Nurse-led education may strengthen behavioral modification, but evidence focusing specifically on structured nutrition counseling in post-intervention cardiac populations is limited. This study evaluated the effect of nurse-led nutrition education on dietary compliance and short-term clinical outcomes in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. A quasi-experimental controlled design was used involving 80 participants assigned to structured nurse-led education (n = 40) or routine care (n = 40). Dietary compliance, systolic blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and body mass index were measured at baseline and 8 weeks, while hospital readmission was assessed at 3 months. The intervention group demonstrated significantly greater improvement in dietary compliance compared with controls (+21.6 vs +4.6, p < .001). Reductions in systolic blood pressure (−12.4 vs −4.1 mmHg), LDL cholesterol (−28.6 vs −9.3 mg/dL), and body mass index (−1.4 vs −0.3 kg/m²) were significantly larger in the intervention group (p < .001). Hospital readmission occurred less frequently among intervention participants (5% vs 17.5%). These findings suggest that nurse-led nutrition education improves dietary adherence and cardiovascular risk indicators following percutaneous coronary intervention and may represent an effective, scalable secondary prevention strategy in cardiac care settings.