The Effectiveness of Telerehabilitation in Liver Transplant Patients
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Telerehabilitation, Home exercise.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Liver Transplantation, Telerehabilitation. Basic parameters: 18 years — 65 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Turkey (Türkiye)
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Investigation of the Effectiveness of the Telerehabilitation Program in Patients With Liver Transplantation
Overview
Liver transplantation is defined as a surgical procedure in which a liver with tissue damage and inability to perform its functions is replaced, in whole or in part, with a healthy liver obtained from a living or deceased donor. Post-transplantation treatment includes medical treatment, physiotherapy, and rehabilitation. Physiotherapy and rehabilitation, an important component of liver transplantation management, consists of three phases: preoperative, early postoperative, and late postoperative. Telerehabilitation is currently defined as the control or monitoring of rehabilitation remotely using telecommunication-related technologies. Studies on telerehabilitation in liver transplant patients are insufficient in the literature. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of a telerehabilitation-based exercise program applied to liver transplant patients on exercise capacity, respiratory muscle strength, peripheral muscle strength, fatigue level and quality of life.
Detailed description
Participants will be randomly divided into two groups: a telerehabilitation group and home exercise program group. Both groups will be evaluated before and after treatment (week 8). The telerehabilitation group will receive videoconference-based telerehabilitation three days a week for eight weeks. All exercises will be performed under the supervision of a physiotherapist. Each telerehabilitation session will last approximately 30-45 minutes. The exercises will be performed in the following order: breathing exercises, strengthening exercises, balance exercises, and walking exercises. The home exercise program group will receive an exercise brochure after the initial evaluation. Both groups will continue with their standard medical treatments, and a second evaluation will be conducted at the end of eight weeks. Participants' exercise capacity will be assessed using the "6-Minute Walk Test," fatigue level using "The Fatigue Severity Scale", respiratory muscle strength by measuring "Maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP)" and "Maximal expiratory pressure (MEP)", muscle strength using a digital dynamometer, balance using the "Timed Up and Go Test," and quality of life using the "The Liver Disease Symptom Index 2.0"
Interventions
- Other Telerehabilitation
The telerehabilitation program will include breathing, strengthening, balance, and walking exercises, with increasing intensity week by week, and stretching exercises targeting major muscles will be given during the cool-down period. - Other Home exercise
Patients will be given brochures on breathing, strengthening, balance and walking exercises and asked to perform them without a physiotherapist.
Primary outcome measures
- 6-Minute Walk Test [Time frame: eight weeks]
- Timed Up and Go Test [Time frame: eight weeks]
Secondary outcome measures (4)
- The Liver Disease Symptom Index 2.0 [Time frame: eight weeks]
- The Fatigue Severity Scale [Time frame: eight weeks]
- Respiratory Muscle Strength Measurement [Time frame: eight weeks]
- Muscle Strength Measurement [Time frame: eight weeks]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Being between 18-65 years of age and having undergone a liver transplant
- Having had a liver transplant operation at least 6 months prior
- Spontaneous breathing
- Hemodynamic stability
- Reading and writing skills
- Ability to mobilize independently, ability to follow verbal and visual instructions
Exclusion criteria
- Presence of unstable cardiovascular disease
- Presence of primary lung disease requiring regular bronchodilator treatment
- Presence of neuromuscular disease or neurological complications
- Musculoskeletal limitation/use of assistive devices
- Being a multiple organ transplant recipient
- Presence of orthopedic disability and functional capacity limitation
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Single blind
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
Study locations
Turkey (Türkiye) · 1 center
- Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa, Faculty of Health Sciences, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitati — Büyükçekmece
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07327008 · IUC-FTR-AA-01