Prehabilitation programmes have the potential to reduce post-operative complications following abdominal cancer surgery by improving pre-operative fitness levels. Home-based prehabilitation programmes may be more cost effective than hospital-based programmes, but have issues with low compliance. The aims of our study are to assess whether mobile technologies such as smart watches and smartphone applications improve compliance with home-based prehabilitation programmes and to assess the effects of prehabilitation on pre-operative fitness levels in patients due to undergo major abdominal cancer surgery.
30 patients due to undergo major abdominal cancer surgery at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust will be enrolled to a pilot randomised controlled trial. They will randomised to either a home-based trimodal prehabilitation programme, delivered by the use of FitBit Smart Watches and Smartphone applications, or a control group who will receive a FitBit for physical activity monitoring only, for a period of 2-6 weeks prior to surgery. The prehabilitation programme will include exercise, nutritional, and psychological components. Study outcomes will include 6MWT (6-minute walk test), HADS (hospital anxiety and depression score), steps per day, length of stay post-operatively, and post-operative complications.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
30
Each participant will receive a Fitbit. The Prehabilitaiton Group will receive a Fitbit Charge 2 and they will be able to review their progress on this and be required to increase their exercise activity and input information and data about the exercise they have completed each day during their participation in the study. The Control group will receive a Fitbit Flex and will not be required to review any of their activity or input any data and will be encouraged to continue with their daily activity rates i.e. not to change.
The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
Manchester, United Kingdom
RECRUITINGQuantitative data collected via a Fitbit
Data will be collected to determine the number of participants whose physical activity increased and by how much during the study
Time frame: Each participant will be monitored for a period of 2-6 weeks pre surgery
Qualitative data collected by questionnaire
Qualitative data will be collected from participants to identify their experience of the study
Time frame: Each participant will be monitored for a period of 2-6 weeks pre surgery
Quantitative data associated with participants weight at the start and end of the research intervention
Participants weight will be measured in kilograms at the start of their participation and then prior to surgery to determine if they were able to either maintain their weight or gain weight
Time frame: Each participant will be monitored for a period of 2-6 weeks pre surgery
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