Prehabilitation Before Major Surgery
PRIME
PRehabilitation In Advance of Major Elective Surgery: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial (PRIME Pilot)
1 other identifier
interventional
120
1 country
3
Brief Summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a virtually monitored, home-based prehabilitation program is feasible and acceptable for adults undergoing major elective surgery. The main questions it aims to answer are:
- Be randomly assigned to receive either the prehabilitation program or usual care
- Complete questionnaires and physical assessments before and after the intervention
- (For those in the intervention group) Receive exercise, nutrition, and mindfulness guidance, protein supplements, and use the CloudDX virtual care platform to support their activities
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P50-P75 for not_applicable
Started Jun 2026
3 active sites
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
Click on a node to explore related trials.
Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
First Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
February 27, 2026
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
May 15, 2026
CompletedStudy Start
First participant enrolled
June 1, 2026
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
October 31, 2027
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
January 31, 2028
May 15, 2026
May 1, 2026
1.4 years
February 27, 2026
May 10, 2026
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (2)
Feasibility of recruiting patients in a timely manner across local and outside sites
We will aim for a patient recruitment rate of 20 patients per month. A recruitment rate of greater than 10 but less than 20 patients per month will be considered feasible with modifications for the definitive study. Feasibility outcomes will be assessed according to the traffic light system. If the results fall within the 'green light' range, the definitive study will proceed as planned. Any results falling into the 'yellow light' range will require review and changes to the protocol before proceeding to the definitive phase. If results fall within the 'red light' range, the study will be considered not feasible without major modifications.
From the start to end of patient recruitment (2 years)
Adherence with virtually monitored home-based prehabilitation program
Adherence will be monitored through the CloudDX activity tracker completed by the study participants. The number of interventions completed will be divided by the number of interventions prescribed to calculate the percent adherence to the overall prehabilitation program. If the mean reported adherence is greater than 80% with an associated lower bound of a 95% CIs of greater than 65%, this will support the feasibility of a definitive study. A mean adherence of greater than 60% (and associated lower bound of a 95% CIs of greater than 50%) but less than 80% will be considered feasible with modifications for the definitive study.
From enrolment to the day of scheduled surgery (3 week timespan)
Secondary Outcomes (14)
Postoperative complications
30 days post-surgery
Mortality
30 days post-surgery
Disability
30 days post-surgery
Length of stay and readmission
Length of stay: From day of surgery to date of documented discharge, assessed up to 30-days after surgery. Readmission: From day of surgery until date of first documented hospital readmission, assessed up to 30-days post-surgery
European Quality of Life 5 Dimensions 5 Level Version (EQ5D5L)
Assessed at each major assessment point throughout the study. (1) Baseline - Day 0 (2) 2 days prior to surgery (3) 30 days after surgery
- +9 more secondary outcomes
Study Arms (2)
Prehabilitation Program
EXPERIMENTALParticipants in this arm will receive a home-based, virtually monitored multimodal prehabilitation program. The intervention includes aerobic and strength exercise prescriptions, nutritional counseling, mindfulness breathing exercises, and 36 Premier Protein® shakes. Participants will use the CloudDX® virtual care platform via a provided tablet or their own device to support adherence and track progress.
Preoperative Standard of Care
NO INTERVENTIONParticipants in this arm will receive standard preoperative care as per current clinical practice. They will not receive any structured prehabilitation components during the study period.
Interventions
A multimodal, home-based prehabilitation program delivered via the CloudDX® virtual platform. Participants in the intervention group will be given a comprehensive prehabilitation pamphlet including: 1. a prescription for aerobic and strength exercises to be completed each week 2. nutritional counselling 3. descriptions of mindfulness deep breathing exercises 4. 36 Premier Protein shakes The participants will complete baseline questionnaires and receive prehabilitation consultation and education after onboarding to the CloudDX virtual platform using a cellular-enabled tablet provided to them, or their own device.
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- ≥ 18 years of age
- Undergoing major elective intra-thoracic, intra-abdominal or orthopedic surgery. Major surgery is defined as any operation performed under general and/or spinal anesthesia requiring a skin incision extending beyond the subcutaneous tissue
- More than 3 weeks from the date of scheduled operation
You may not qualify if:
- Emergency Surgery
- Operation in less than 3 weeks from time of initial research contact
- Patients who are pregnant
- Unable/unwilling to sign written informed consent
- Physical, cognitive or psychological impairment
- Unable to understand/communication in English.
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
- Queen's Universitylead
- Canadian Anesthesia Research Foundationcollaborator
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institutecollaborator
- Kingston Health Sciences Centrecollaborator
- Hamilton Health Sciences Centrecollaborator
- St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamiltoncollaborator
Study Sites (3)
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario, L8N 4A6, Canada
Kingston Health Sciences Centre
Kingston, Ontario, K7L 2V7, Canada
The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4E9, Canada
Related Publications (16)
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PMID: 27777223BACKGROUNDBauer J, Capra S, Ferguson M. Use of the scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) as a nutrition assessment tool in patients with cancer. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2002 Aug;56(8):779-85. doi: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601412.
PMID: 12122555BACKGROUNDHerdman M, Gudex C, Lloyd A, Janssen M, Kind P, Parkin D, Bonsel G, Badia X. Development and preliminary testing of the new five-level version of EQ-5D (EQ-5D-5L). Qual Life Res. 2011 Dec;20(10):1727-36. doi: 10.1007/s11136-011-9903-x. Epub 2011 Apr 9.
PMID: 21479777BACKGROUNDUstun TB, Chatterji S, Kostanjsek N, Rehm J, Kennedy C, Epping-Jordan J, Saxena S, von Korff M, Pull C; WHO/NIH Joint Project. Developing the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0. Bull World Health Organ. 2010 Nov 1;88(11):815-23. doi: 10.2471/BLT.09.067231. Epub 2010 May 20.
PMID: 21076562BACKGROUNDLaporte M, Keller HH, Payette H, Allard JP, Duerksen DR, Bernier P, Jeejeebhoy K, Gramlich L, Davidson B, Vesnaver E, Teterina A. Validity and reliability of the new Canadian Nutrition Screening Tool in the 'real-world' hospital setting. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2015 May;69(5):558-64. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2014.270. Epub 2014 Dec 17.
PMID: 25514899BACKGROUNDGrevitt M, Khazim R, Webb J, Mulholland R, Shepperd J. The short form-36 health survey questionnaire in spine surgery. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 1997 Jan;79(1):48-52. doi: 10.1302/0301-620x.79b1.1269.
PMID: 9020444BACKGROUNDMcIsaac DI, Hladkowicz E, Bryson GL, Forster AJ, Gagne S, Huang A, Lalu M, Lavallee LT, Moloo H, Nantel J, Power B, Scheede-Bergdahl C, van Walraven C, McCartney CJL, Taljaard M. Home-based prehabilitation with exercise to improve postoperative recovery for older adults with frailty having cancer surgery: the PREHAB randomised clinical trial. Br J Anaesth. 2022 Jul;129(1):41-48. doi: 10.1016/j.bja.2022.04.006. Epub 2022 May 17.
PMID: 35589429BACKGROUNDMartin D, Besson C, Pache B, Michel A, Geinoz S, Gremeaux-Bader V, Larcinese A, Benaim C, Kayser B, Demartines N, Hubner M. Feasibility of a prehabilitation program before major abdominal surgery: a pilot prospective study. J Int Med Res. 2021 Nov;49(11):3000605211060196. doi: 10.1177/03000605211060196.
PMID: 34851778BACKGROUNDChmelo J, Phillips AW, Greystoke A, Charman SJ, Avery L, Hallsworth K, Welford J, Cooper M, Sinclair RCF. A feasibility trial of prehabilitation before oesophagogastric cancer surgery using a multi-component home-based exercise programme: the ChemoFit study. Pilot Feasibility Stud. 2022 Aug 9;8(1):173. doi: 10.1186/s40814-022-01137-6.
PMID: 35945625BACKGROUNDBojesen RD, Jorgensen LB, Grube C, Skou ST, Johansen C, Dalton SO, Gogenur I. Fit for Surgery-feasibility of short-course multimodal individualized prehabilitation in high-risk frail colon cancer patients prior to surgery. Pilot Feasibility Stud. 2022 Jan 21;8(1):11. doi: 10.1186/s40814-022-00967-8.
PMID: 35063042BACKGROUNDMolenaar CJL, Minnella EM, Coca-Martinez M, Ten Cate DWG, Regis M, Awasthi R, Martinez-Palli G, Lopez-Baamonde M, Sebio-Garcia R, Feo CV, van Rooijen SJ, Schreinemakers JMJ, Bojesen RD, Gogenur I, van den Heuvel ER, Carli F, Slooter GD; PREHAB Study Group. Effect of Multimodal Prehabilitation on Reducing Postoperative Complications and Enhancing Functional Capacity Following Colorectal Cancer Surgery: The PREHAB Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Surg. 2023 Jun 1;158(6):572-581. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2023.0198.
PMID: 36988937BACKGROUNDGillis C, Fenton TR, Sajobi TT, Minnella EM, Awasthi R, Loiselle SE, Liberman AS, Stein B, Charlebois P, Carli F. Trimodal prehabilitation for colorectal surgery attenuates post-surgical losses in lean body mass: A pooled analysis of randomized controlled trials. Clin Nutr. 2019 Jun;38(3):1053-1060. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2018.06.982. Epub 2018 Jul 9.
PMID: 30025745BACKGROUNDLi C, Carli F, Lee L, Charlebois P, Stein B, Liberman AS, Kaneva P, Augustin B, Wongyingsinn M, Gamsa A, Kim DJ, Vassiliou MC, Feldman LS. Impact of a trimodal prehabilitation program on functional recovery after colorectal cancer surgery: a pilot study. Surg Endosc. 2013 Apr;27(4):1072-82. doi: 10.1007/s00464-012-2560-5. Epub 2012 Oct 9.
PMID: 23052535BACKGROUNDMcIsaac DI, Gill M, Boland L, Hutton B, Branje K, Shaw J, Grudzinski AL, Barone N, Gillis C; Prehabilitation Knowledge Network. Prehabilitation in adult patients undergoing surgery: an umbrella review of systematic reviews. Br J Anaesth. 2022 Feb;128(2):244-257. doi: 10.1016/j.bja.2021.11.014. Epub 2021 Dec 16.
PMID: 34922735BACKGROUNDSchoenfeld AJ, Serrano JA, Waterman BR, Bader JO, Belmont PJ Jr. The impact of resident involvement on post-operative morbidity and mortality following orthopaedic procedures: a study of 43,343 cases. Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 2013 Nov;133(11):1483-91. doi: 10.1007/s00402-013-1841-3. Epub 2013 Sep 1.
PMID: 23995548BACKGROUNDMaibom SL, Joensen UN, Poulsen AM, Kehlet H, Brasso K, Roder MA. Short-term morbidity and mortality following radical cystectomy: a systematic review. BMJ Open. 2021 Apr 14;11(4):e043266. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2020-043266.
PMID: 33853799BACKGROUND
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Officials
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Jordan Leitch, MSc, MD, FRCPC
Queen's University
Central Study Contacts
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- TRIPLE
- Who Masked
- CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
- Masking Details
- Research staff (with the exception of the individual informing participants of group allocation), healthcare providers, and outcome assessors will be blinded to treatment allocation.
- Purpose
- SUPPORTIVE CARE
- Intervention Model
- PARALLEL
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- PGME Program Director and Assistant Professor - Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
February 27, 2026
First Posted
May 15, 2026
Study Start
June 1, 2026
Primary Completion (Estimated)
October 31, 2027
Study Completion (Estimated)
January 31, 2028
Last Updated
May 15, 2026
Record last verified: 2026-05