Pilot Trial of Abdominal Core Rehabilitation To Improve Outcomes After Ventral Hernia Repair (ABVENTURE-P)

May 7, 2026 updated by: Ajit Chaudhari, Ohio State University
This study aims to evaluate the potential role of physical therapy in improving outcomes after ventral hernia repair.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

After being informed about the study and potential risks, all patients giving written informed consent will perform assessments of several activities of daily living and complete several surveys detailing their pre-surgical abilities, quality of life, and pain. Immediately after their surgical procedure, patients will be randomized in a single-blind manner (investigator) in a 1:1 ratio to supervised physical therapy (8 weeks, twice weekly) or standard post-surgical precautions. Assessments and surveys will be repeated by the blinded investigator at 30 days, 10 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year after surgery.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
138

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Ohio
      • Columbus, Ohio, United States, 43210
        • Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria

  • Ages 18+
  • Diagnosis of ventral hernia
  • Scheduled for elective ventral hernia repair
  • Independent functional status
  • Transverse hernia width of 2cm or greater

Exclusion Criteria

  • Previously diagnosed movement or balance disorder
  • Use of ambulatory assistive device (walker or cane)
  • Not currently undergoing or planning to undergo physical therapy or other skilled exercise intervention supervised by a medical rehabilitation professional

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: Standard Post-operative Instructions
Participants in the control group will be told upon post-operative discharge that they should follow the post-operative instructions.
Other: Post-operative Precautions
This intervention includes standard of care post-operative instructions typically given to patients undergoing ventral hernia repair across the world. These include limiting strenuous physical activity and a lifting restriction of no more than 10 pounds for 6 weeks. Binder use is also encouraged for 4-6 weeks after the operation.
Experimental: Supervised Physical Therapy
Participants in the physical therapy group will be scheduled for visits to the physical therapy clinic beginning two weeks after surgery, and will undergo supervised physical therapy treatments approximately twice per week for eight weeks according to a standardized evidence-based post-operative abdominal core surgery rehabilitation program.
Other: Supervised Physical Therapy
The twice-per-week 8-week course of supervised physical therapy begins 2 weeks after surgery. It targets abdominal core function through progressive muscle retraining and strengthening, and patient-specific posture and body mechanics education.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change From Baseline in Five Times Sit-to-stand Time
Time Frame: Baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
From a standard chair, stand and sit back down five times in immediate succession as quickly as possible. The test is scored in seconds, where a shorter time represents greater mobility.
Baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Change From Baseline in Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) - Physical Function
Time Frame: Baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
PROMIS-Physical Function is a computer-adaptive patient-reported questionnaire asking questions about physical function. The responses are converted to a t-score which is then reported as a percentile, where 50th percentile represents the average individual. Higher scores indicate greater physical function. This outcome is reported as a change in percentile, where a change of 0 indicates no change in physical function between the two timepoints and a positive change in percentile points indicates an improvement in physical function relative to the rest of the population.
Baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Change From Baseline in Quiet Unstable Sitting Test
Time Frame: Baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Sit on an inflated cushion that creates an unstable surface for 60 seconds with eyes closed and arms crossed while counting to a metronome. The raw measurement is the center of pressure excursion (cumulative amount of postural sway) of the participant during the 60 seconds. QUeST is scored as a scaled Z-score, where 0 represents the mean value for a healthy control population. A negative score indicates how many multiples of the standard error of measurement the participant is worse than the mean value for a healthy normal population. A positive change indicates improvement in core stability, with an MCID for change ≥1. The total range of the measure can be as high as 0 and has no explicit negative bound.
Baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Hernia Related Quality of Life Survey From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
The Hernia-related Quality of Life Survey (HerQLeS) patient-reported questionnaire asks questions about how abdominal wall function affects activities of daily living, independent mobility, and mental health. The survey is scored on a 0-100 scale, where 100 indicates the highest quality of life and 0 indicates the worst.
baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Change in Timed Up-And-Go Time From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Starting seated in a standard chair, stand, walk forward 3 m, turn 180 deg, walk back to chair, sit down. Do all of these as quickly as can be done safely. The test is scored in seconds, and a lower time indicates better mobility.
baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Change From Baseline in International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Self-reported physical activity questions spanning sedentary behavior, job activity, transportation activity, household activity, and recreational activity. The test is scored in Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET)-minutes per week. More minutes means greater physical activity, either by increasing time or the intensity of the activity or both.
baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Change From Baseline in Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia - Short Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Self-reported 11-question survey on how fear affects desire and ability to perform physical activities. Scores range from 11 (lowest) to 44 (highest). Higher scores indicate greater fear, where 11-22 is minimal fear, 23-28 is low fear, 29-35 is moderate fear, and 36-44 is high fear.
baseline before surgery, 10 weeks after surgery
Number of Participants With Hernia Recurrence Using the Hernia Recurrence Inventory
Time Frame: 1 year after surgery
Patient-reported questionnaire asking questions regarding a recurrence of the hernia based on pain and presence of a physical bulge. A recurrence is determined by if the patient reports thinking the hernia has come back, feeling or seeing a bulge, or having pain or symptoms at the site. A positive response to any of these 3 questions is considered a recurrence. A recurrence is considered a suboptimal outcome.
1 year after surgery
Change in Hernia Related Quality of Life Survey From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
The Hernia-related Quality of Life Survey (HerQLeS) patient-reported questionnaire asks questions about how abdominal wall function affects activities of daily living, independent mobility, and mental health. The survey is scored on a 0-100 scale, where 100 indicates the highest quality of life and 0 indicates the worst.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Change in Timed Up-And-Go Time From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Starting seated in a standard chair, stand, walk forward 3 m, turn 180 deg, walk back to chair, sit down. Do all of these as quickly as can be done safely. The test is scored in seconds, and a lower time indicates better mobility.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Change From Baseline in International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Long Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Self-reported physical activity questions spanning sedentary behavior, job activity, transportation activity, household activity, and recreational activity. The test is scored in Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET)-minutes per week. More minutes means greater physical activity, either by increasing time or the intensity of the activity or both.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Change From Baseline in Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia - Short Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Self-reported 11-question survey on how fear affects desire and ability to perform physical activities. Scores range from 11 (lowest) to 44 (highest). Higher scores indicate greater fear, where 11-22 is minimal fear, 23-28 is low fear, 29-35 is moderate fear, and 36-44 is high fear.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Change From Baseline in Five Times Sit-to-stand Time
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
From a standard chair, stand and sit back down five times in immediate succession as quickly as possible. The test is scored in seconds, where a shorter time represents greater mobility.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Change From Baseline in Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) - Physical Function
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
PROMIS-Physical Function is a computer-adaptive patient-reported questionnaire asking questions about physical function. The responses are converted to a t-score which is then reported as a percentile, where 50th percentile represents the average individual. Higher scores indicate greater physical function. This outcome is reported as a change in percentile, where a change of 0 indicates no change in physical function between the two timepoints and a positive change in percentile points indicates an improvement in physical function relative to the rest of the population.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Change From Baseline in Quiet Unstable Sitting Test
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery
Sit on an inflated cushion that creates an unstable surface for 60 seconds with eyes closed and arms crossed while counting to a metronome. The raw measurement is the center of pressure excursion (cumulative amount of postural sway) of the participant during the 60 seconds. QUeST is scored as a scaled Z-score, where 0 represents the mean value for a healthy control population. A negative score indicates how many multiples of the standard error of measurement the participant is worse than the mean value for a healthy normal population. A positive change indicates improvement in core stability, with an MCID for change ≥1. The total range of the measure can be as high as 0 and has no explicit negative bound.
baseline before surgery, 1 year after surgery

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Hernia Related Quality of Life Survey From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
The Hernia-related Quality of Life Survey (HerQLeS) patient-reported questionnaire asks questions about how abdominal wall function affects activities of daily living, independent mobility, and mental health. The survey is scored on a 0-100 scale, where 100 indicates the highest quality of life and 0 indicates the worst.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change in Timed Up-And-Go Time From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Starting seated in a standard chair, stand, walk forward 3 m, turn 180 deg, walk back to chair, sit down. Do all of these as quickly as can be done safely. The test is scored in seconds, and a lower time indicates better mobility.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change From Baseline in International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Self-reported physical activity questions spanning sedentary behavior, job activity, transportation activity, household activity, and recreational activity. The test is scored in Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET)-minutes per week. More minutes means greater physical activity, either by increasing time or the intensity of the activity or both.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change From Baseline in Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia - Short Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Self-reported 11-question survey on how fear affects desire and ability to perform physical activities. Scores range from 11 (lowest) to 44 (highest). Higher scores indicate greater fear, where 11-22 is minimal fear, 23-28 is low fear, 29-35 is moderate fear, and 36-44 is high fear.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change From Baseline in Five Times Sit-to-stand Time
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
From a standard chair, stand and sit back down five times in immediate succession as quickly as possible. The test is scored in seconds, where a shorter time represents greater mobility.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change From Baseline in Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) - Physical Function
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
PROMIS-Physical Function is a computer-adaptive patient-reported questionnaire asking questions about physical function. The responses are converted to a t-score which is then reported as a percentile, where 50th percentile represents the average individual. Higher scores indicate greater physical function. This outcome is reported as a change in percentile, where a change of 0 indicates no change in physical function between the two timepoints and a positive change in percentile points indicates an improvement in physical function relative to the rest of the population.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change From Baseline in Quiet Unstable Sitting Test
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Sit on an inflated cushion that creates an unstable surface for 60 seconds with eyes closed and arms crossed while counting to a metronome. The raw measurement is the center of pressure excursion (cumulative amount of postural sway) of the participant during the 60 seconds. QUeST is scored as a scaled Z-score, where 0 represents the mean value for a healthy control population. A negative score indicates how many multiples of the standard error of measurement the participant is worse than the mean value for a healthy normal population. A positive change indicates improvement in core stability, with an MCID for change ≥1. The total range of the measure can be as high as 0 and has no explicit negative bound.
baseline before surgery, 30 days after surgery
Change in Hernia Related Quality of Life Survey From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
The Hernia-related Quality of Life Survey (HerQLeS) patient-reported questionnaire asks questions about how abdominal wall function affects activities of daily living, independent mobility, and mental health. The survey is scored on a 0-100 scale, where 100 indicates the highest quality of life and 0 indicates the worst.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Change in Timed Up-And-Go Time From Baseline
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Starting seated in a standard chair, stand, walk forward 3 m, turn 180 deg, walk back to chair, sit down. Do all of these as quickly as can be done safely. The test is scored in seconds, and a lower time indicates better mobility.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Change From Baseline in International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Long Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Self-reported physical activity questions spanning sedentary behavior, job activity, transportation activity, household activity, and recreational activity. The test is scored in Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET)-minutes per week. More minutes means greater physical activity, either by increasing time or the intensity of the activity or both.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Change From Baseline in Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia - Short Form
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
The Hernia-related Quality of Life Survey (HerQLeS) patient-reported questionnaire asks questions about how abdominal wall function affects activities of daily living, independent mobility, and mental health. The survey is scored on a 0-100 scale, where 100 indicates the highest quality of life and 0 indicates the worst.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Change From Baseline in Five Times Sit-to-stand Time
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
From a standard chair, stand and sit back down five times in immediate succession as quickly as possible. The test is scored in seconds, where a shorter time represents greater mobility.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Change From Baseline in Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) - Physical Function
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
PROMIS-Physical Function is a computer-adaptive patient-reported questionnaire asking questions about physical function. The responses are converted to a t-score which is then reported as a percentile, where 50th percentile represents the average individual. Higher scores indicate greater physical function. This outcome is reported as a change in percentile, where a change of 0 indicates no change in physical function between the two timepoints and a positive change in percentile points indicates an improvement in physical function relative to the rest of the population.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Change From Baseline in Quiet Unstable Sitting Test
Time Frame: baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery
Sit on an inflated cushion that creates an unstable surface for 60 seconds with eyes closed and arms crossed while counting to a metronome. The raw measurement is the center of pressure excursion (cumulative amount of postural sway) of the participant during the 60 seconds. QUeST is scored as a scaled Z-score, where 0 represents the mean value for a healthy control population. A negative score indicates how many multiples of the standard error of measurement the participant is worse than the mean value for a healthy normal population. A positive change indicates improvement in core stability, with an MCID for change ≥1. The total range of the measure can be as high as 0 and has no explicit negative bound.
baseline before surgery, 6 months after surgery

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Ohio State University

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 19, 2022

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
February 18, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 23, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
November 3, 2021

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 19, 2021

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
December 2, 2021

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 3, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 7, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2021H0336
  • R01DK131207 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Only de-identified data will be shared with other researchers.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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