Remote vs In-Person Prehabilitation for Kidney Transplant Candidates

Implementation of a Multimodal Prehabilitation Program for Patients With Advanced Chronic Kidney Disease Awaiting Deceased-Donor Kidney Transplantation: A Comparison of In-Person and Remote Delivery Models

Patients with advanced chronic kidney disease awaiting deceased-donor kidney transplantation frequently experience progressive functional decline, frailty, reduced mobility, and poor quality of life while on the transplant waiting list. Although multimodal prehabilitation programs based on exercise, nutritional optimization, and psychological support have shown promising benefits in major surgery, their implementation in kidney transplant candidates remains limited due to barriers related to accessibility, fatigue, transportation, and treatment burden.

This randomized single-center clinical trial aims to evaluate the feasibility, adherence, and effectiveness of a multimodal prehabilitation program in patients awaiting deceased-donor kidney transplantation, comparing an in-person supervised model with a remote home-based model supported by a digital platform. The primary outcome will be the change in functional capacity measured by the 6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT). Secondary outcomes include physical activity level, frailty, nutritional status, kidney disease-specific quality of life (KDQOL-36), postoperative recovery quality (QoR-15), postoperative complications, and program adherence.

The study seeks to generate clinically applicable evidence regarding the implementation and scalability of remote prehabilitation strategies in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease, with the potential to improve accessibility, sustainability, and perioperative outcomes in kidney transplantation.

Patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) awaiting deceased-donor kidney transplantation frequently experience progressive deterioration in functional capacity, mobility, and quality of life during the waiting-list period. Frailty, sarcopenia, cardiovascular comorbidity, anemia, fatigue, and physical inactivity are highly prevalent in this population and may adversely affect perioperative outcomes, postoperative recovery, and healthcare utilization after transplantation. Reduced cardiorespiratory reserve has been associated with increased postoperative morbidity and poorer clinical outcomes in kidney transplant recipients.

Prehabilitation has emerged as a perioperative optimization strategy aimed at enhancing functional reserve before surgical stress through multimodal interventions that combine structured exercise training, nutritional optimization, and psychological support. Previous studies in major surgery and solid organ transplantation suggest that prehabilitation may improve exercise tolerance, physical functioning, postoperative recovery, and patient-reported outcomes. However, implementation of prehabilitation programs in patients with advanced CKD remains limited because of barriers related to dialysis schedules, transportation burden, fatigue, reduced mobility, and limited access to specialized hospital-based programs.

Remote or home-based prehabilitation models supported by digital technologies may improve accessibility, adherence, and scalability while maintaining clinical effectiveness. Nevertheless, evidence comparing remote and in-person multimodal prehabilitation strategies in kidney transplant candidates remains scarce.

This study is a prospective randomized single-center clinical trial designed to evaluate the feasibility, adherence, and effectiveness of a multimodal prehabilitation program in adult patients with advanced CKD awaiting deceased-donor kidney transplantation. Participants will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to either an in-person supervised prehabilitation program or a remote home-based program delivered through a digital platform.

Both intervention groups will receive the same multimodal components, differing only in the delivery format. The intervention includes structured individualized exercise training combining aerobic exercise, strength training, mobility, and balance exercises; individualized nutritional counseling focused on optimization of protein-energy status and prevention of sarcopenia; and psychological support aimed at stress management, motivation, and behavioral reinforcement.

During the initial 8-week intervention phase, participants assigned to the in-person group will attend supervised exercise sessions at the hospital gym three times per week. Participants assigned to the remote group will perform supervised online exercise sessions through the Surgifit® digital platform three times per week in small groups. Following completion of the structured phase, both groups will continue with a personalized community-based physical activity program until transplantation.

All participants will receive access to the Surgifit® platform, which provides educational resources, exercise guidance, nutritional recommendations, healthy recipes, and mindfulness activities. The platform will also facilitate monitoring of adherence and remote supervision of exercise sessions.

Functional, nutritional, frailty, psychological, and quality-of-life assessments will be performed at baseline, at 8 weeks, and at 6 months if transplantation has not yet occurred. Postoperative recovery and clinical outcomes will be assessed in patients undergoing transplantation during the study period.

The primary outcome measure of the study is the change in functional capacity measured by the 6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT). Secondary outcome measures include adherence to the intervention, habitual physical activity level, frailty measures, nutritional status, body composition, kidney disease-specific quality of life, postoperative quality of recovery, postoperative complications, and healthcare utilization outcomes.

The study also incorporates an implementation-oriented framework focused on feasibility, adherence, accessibility, and scalability of multimodal prehabilitation in advanced CKD. Additional exploratory analyses will evaluate patient-perceived barriers and facilitators to participation through questionnaires and qualitative assessments. Environmental and organizational sustainability indicators associated with remote delivery models, including reduction in transportation-related burden and accessibility for patients living far from the transplant center, will also be explored.

The trial is expected to generate clinically applicable evidence regarding the integration of multimodal prehabilitation programs in kidney transplant candidates and to inform future patient-centered and scalable perioperative optimization strategies for patients with advanced chronic kidney disease.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adults aged 18 years or older.
• Patients with advanced chronic kidney disease on the waiting list for deceased-donor kidney transplantation.
• Ability to perform moderate-intensity physical exercise.
• Able and willing to provide written informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Absolute contraindication to physical exercise.
• Severe cognitive impairment limiting participation in the intervention or assessments.
• Active infection at the time of enrollment.
• Clinically unstable medical condition.
• Physical or musculoskeletal limitations preventing participation in the exercise program.