A Frailty-specific Prehabilitation Program for Mild to Moderately Frail Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgeries/Procedures

September 13, 2026 updated by: Dr. Polly Wai-Chi Li, The University of Hong Kong

A Frailty-specific Prehabilitation Program for Mild to Moderately Frail Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgeries: A Randomized Sham-controlled Trial

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the frailty-specific prehabilitation program on functional capacity, frailty, cardiac-specific functional status, serum albumin level, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) level, HRQoL, psychological outcomes, major adverse cardiovascular and cerebral events (MACCEs), and hospital readmission rates in cardiac patients. This study tests a home-based prehabilitation program for frail older adults waiting 5+ weeks for heart surgery. Participants, aged 65+ with mild-to-moderate frailty, receive structured preoperative education, protein-rich nutrition advice, relaxation techniques for stress, and exercise training 3 times weekly via home visits, video calls, and self-practice. A control group gets sham light stretching plus usual care.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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.

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 (Estimated)

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.
144

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.
  • Name: Polly W.C. Li
  • Phone Number: 852-3917-6686
  • Email: pwcli@hku.hk

Study Locations

  • Hong Kong
      • Hong Kong, Hong Kong
        • Recruiting
        • School of Nursing, The University of Hong Kong
        • Contact:
          • Polly W.C. Li
          • Phone Number: 852-3917-6686
          • Email: pwcli@hku.hk

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Chinese adult patients scheduled for elective CABG, valve repair/replacement, or combined CABG and valve repair/replacement;
  • Have mild-to-moderate frailty at the time of recruitment, indicated by a Clinical Frailty Scale score of 4 to 6;
  • Have at least 5 weeks of procedural waiting time;
  • Are physically fit for prehabilitation as assessed by the surgeon's/cardiologist's using a risk assessment checklist;
  • Live with their family;
  • Are able to use an electronic device with internet access (patient/family).

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients with impaired cognition (Abbreviated Mental Test score ≤ 6) or communication, or with physical limitations affecting their ability to exercise

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: Prevention
  • 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.
Experimental: Frailty-specific prehabilitation program
A comprehensive prerehabilitation program which includes 4 components: 1) structured preoperative education; 2) nutritional optimization; 3) stress management; and 4) exercise training or usual care, respectively. The prehabilitation will last for at least 4 weeks, continuing throughout the waiting period. From Week 5 until the day of the surgery, the coach will offer support to encourage the participants to maintain self-practice by prescribing exercises that have previously been learned.
Behavioral: Frailty-specific prehabilitation program
A comprehensive prerehabilitation program which includes 4 components: 1) structured preoperative education; 2) nutritional optimization; 3) stress management; and 4) exercise training or usual care, respectively. The prehabilitation will last for at least 4 weeks, continuing throughout the waiting period. From Week 5 until the day of the surgery, the coach will offer support to encourage the participants to maintain self-practice by prescribing exercises that have previously been learned.
Sham Comparator: Attention placebo control
A sham stretching exercise intervention to neutralize the attention effects given by the intervener. The exercise protocol consists of light-intensity stretching exercises. The frequency and delivery format will be the same as the prehabilitation for the intervention group, but the duration is shortened to 30-minute per session.
Behavioral: A sham stretching exercise intervention
A sham stretching exercise intervention to neutralize the attention effects given by the intervener. The exercise protocol consists of light-intensity stretching exercise involving the upper and lower body, such as neck stretch, shoulder stretch, calf stretch and sited hamstring stretch. The frequency and delivery format will be the same as the prehabilitation for the intervention group, but the duration is shortened to 30-minute per session

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
Functional Capacity
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), one-day before surgery (T1), postoperative 1 month (T2) and postoperative 3 months (T3)
Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) will be used to assess lower limb functional capacity. It is well validated and has been widely adopted in clinical and research settings. It consists of three timed-tasks: standing balance, walking speed, and chair-stand. The timed results will be scaled to a score from 0 to 12, with higher scores indicating better functional capacity. A hydraulic dynamometer (Jamar) will be used to evaluate grip strength of the dominant hand by maximal isometric contraction, taking the highest reading from at least two trials.
Baseline (T0), one-day before surgery (T1), postoperative 1 month (T2) and postoperative 3 months (T3)

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
Frailty Status
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3).
The Edmonton Frail Scale (EFS) will be used to evaluate the level of frailty. It consists of nine domains with performance-based and self-reported items scored from 0 to 17, with a higher score indicating a higher level of frailty.
Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3).
Cardiac-specific functional status
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
The Seattle Angina Questionnaire (SAQ-7) will be used to measure cardiac-related physical functioning. It has seven items measuring three domains: physical limitation, angina frequency, and disease perception, scored on a 1-5 or 1-6 sequentially coded scale. Subscale scores are transformed to a scale of 0-100, with higher scores indicating higher levels of functioning and fewer limitations.
Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
Cardiac-specific HRQoL
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
The MacNew instrument will be used to measure cardiac-specific HRQoL. It has 27 items scored on a scale of 1-7, and the global score is calculated by summing the item scores, with higher scores representing better HRQoL.
Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
Psychological distress
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
The Patient Health Questionnaire-4 will be used to measure psychological distress. It consists of four items assessing anxiety and depression, with responses given on a 4-point Likert scale. The composite total score ranges from 0 to 12, with higher scores indicating a greater level of anxiety and depression.
Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
Biomarkers (serum albumin)
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
Serum albumin (g/L) will be assayed according to standard laboratory guidelines in clinical settings
Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
Major adverse cardiovascular and cerebral events (MACCEs) and hospital readmission rates
Time Frame: From the time of enrollment in the study until 12 months after completing the intervention
MACCEs and hospital readmission rates will be monitored from the time of enrollment in the study until 12 months after completing the intervention through the review of the medical records. MACCEs are defined as an acute myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, or any-cause mortality, using diagnosis codes from the International Classification of Diseases, Clinical Modification, tenth Revision.
From the time of enrollment in the study until 12 months after completing the intervention
Biomarker (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP])
Time Frame: Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)
hs-CRP (g/L) will be assayed according to standard laboratory guidelines in clinical settings
Baseline (T0), 1 day before surgery (T1), 1 month after surgery (T2), and 3 months after surgery (T3)

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.
The University of Hong Kong

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.
June 4, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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.
April 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

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.
April 7, 2027

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).
June 4, 2026

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.
September 13, 2026

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.
September 17, 2026

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.
September 17, 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.
September 13, 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.
July 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.
  • 2025.526

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

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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