Smartwatches could help to prepare patients for major surgery and improve their recovery journey, new research has found.
In a study sponsored by The University of Manchester, researchers at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester found that using a Fitbit smartwatch can improve a patient’s fitness pre-surgery, enabling better recovery and a shorter stay in hospital post-op.
The trial initially started in May 2019 and recruited 22 patients who were scheduled to have major abdominal surgery at The Christie for appendix cancer. Half the patients were given an exercise programme to suit their abilities and the other half were told to continue with their normal level of activity.
The cohort was constantly monitored remotely to ensure they were completing the daily activities they had been set, and the research team also called them weekly over their four-to-six-week pre-habilitation period. Having the Fitbit increased compliance and reduced hospital visits, which benefited patients, particularly those that did not live locally.
Feedback from the participants found the Fitbit wearable devices encouraged them to complete their exercises as they could easily see their progress towards their activity goals.
Mr Omer Aziz, Consultant Surgeon at The Christie and Honorary Lecturer at The University of Manchester, who is leading the study, said: “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first research into using smartwatch technology to benefit patients’ outcomes post-surgery. This novel approach could mean more patients are fitter for surgery, resulting in a shorter recovery time and therefore less days in hospital, which not only benefits the patient but saves the NHS money. Using this method is also more convenient and safer for patients as they can do their pre-habilitation at home, avoiding a trip to hospital. During the pandemic this has, of course, been even more beneficial.
“This novel approach could mean more patients are fitter for surgery, resulting in a shorter recovery time and therefore less days in hospital, which not only benefits the patient but saves the NHS money.”
Shorter post-op stays
Julie Gray, 61, from Bacup in Rossendale, Lancashire, one of the patients on the trial, who had major abdominal surgery, said: “The Fitbit certainly made me go and do more exercise. I’m a convert and I’ve now bought my own Fitbit and given one to my husband and daughter. It keeps track of your general health and sleep patterns which is also really helpful. In 2019 I had an 11-hour operation but came out of it feeling better than before. I think it did help me with the recovery and I was up and about not long after the operation. I even joined a gym and did spin and step classes.”
Julie left hospital nine days after her operation, which is three days earlier than the average 12-day length of stay for this kind of operation.
Seema Rahman, Senior Physiotherapist at The Christie, who was involved with this trial, said: “We see patients as little as 12 hours after their operation. We noticed the patients that had used the Fitbits felt fitter and were more than happy to get out of bed and start rehab. They were in the right mindset as they had put in all the hard work beforehand and were keen to get back to fitness. They were more mentally prepared for the next part of their journey to recovery and it wasn’t a shock for them.
“We know exercise helps reduce the recurrence of cancer, so changing their mindset to exercise is extremely important for their long-term health. It’s still too early to determine if the Fitbits are key to shorter post-op stays, as we need to study this further but anecdotally, we observed that the patients using the Fitbits generally left hospital sooner than those that didn’t.”
Previously, pre-habilitation before major abdominal cancer surgery has ranged from unsupervised home-based techniques, such as providing the patient with exercise booklets, CDs, and computer programmes, to supervised, hospital-based, face-to-face sessions using cycle ergometers and exercise equipment.
