Sura, Lydia

Prehabilitation with Impella 5.5 offers hemodynamic support while allowing early mobilization, yet its overall effect on post-transplant recovery remains unclear. The aim was to assess recovery during Impella 5.5–supported prehabilitation and determine its association with early post-heart transplant outcomes, including a potential dose–response relationship with ambulatory activity. We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study of adults bridged to transplant with Impella 5.5 between April 1, 2022 and September 30, 2024. Daily walking distance, recorded by nursing staff, served as the intervention. Primary outcome was postoperative hospital length of stay (LOS); the secondary outcome was time to extubation. Fine–Gray competing-risk models, adjusted for age, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, New York Heart Association (NYHA) class, and days of Impella support, assessed associations. Longitudinal recovery trajectories were analyzed with linear mixed-effects models incorporating restricted cubic splines. Among 82 eligible patients, 65 met the inclusion criteria. Patients who walked farther during Impella 5.5 support in the intensive care unit (ICU) had shorter hospital stays and were taken off the ventilator sooner after transplantation. The overall recovery peaked during the first 2–3 weeks of support, with smaller recovery thereafter, indicating that most functional recovery occurred early during prehabilitation.

Heart transplantation is a well-established treatment for end-stage heart failure, but many patients present in poor physical condition, complicating outcomes. The Impella 5.5 device, used in cardiogenic shock, may support pretransplant rehabilitation by stabilizing organ function and promoting functional improvement. This retrospective cohort study assessed the relationship between functional status, measured by standardized Activity Measure for Post-Acute Care Basic Mobility (AM-PAC) scores, and days alive outside the hospital within 30 days post-transplant (DAOH-30). Patients who received Impella 5.5 support before transplantation between January 2019 and October 2023 were included, excluding those without AM-PAC scores within 24 hours pretransplant. Among 65 patients, the median DAOH-30 was 15 days (interquartile range [IQR], 8–19). Higher pretransplant standardized AM-PAC scores correlate with increased DAOH-30 (adjusted coefficient 0.3; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.01–0.6; p = 0.04), as did AM-PAC score improvement during rehabilitation (adjusted coefficient 0.35; 95% CI = 0.01–0.6; p = 0.04). Extended rehabilitation was associated with greater functional gains. These findings suggest that better pretransplant functional status and rehabilitation-related improvements were associated with increased DAOH-30. The Impella 5.5 device facilitates rehabilitation and may enhance post-transplant outcomes. Further research should refine strategies to optimize rehabilitation and recovery in this high-risk population.

Introduction/Background: Patients with heart failure and those waiting for a heart transplant often experience a significant decrease in their ability to perform daily activities and exercise, leading to a lower quality of life. Although exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (EBCR) is a possible treatment option, its effectiveness has not been well measured, resulting in limited adoption. Research Questions/Hypothesis: Could physical rehabilitation before receiving a heart transplant improve functional status and better outcomes? Goals/Aims: Our objective is to evaluate the effect of pre-transplant physical therapy on the standardized improvement of AM-PAC scores, measured from the earliest pre-transplant assessment to the most recent pre-transplant evaluation. Our second objective is to assess the impact of the latest Pre-Transplant AM-PAC Score on the number of hospital-free days following transplantation. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study on 91 heart transplant patients who received Impella support from January 2019 to April 2023, approved by the Mayo Clinic Institutional Review Board. We collected data on demographics, AMPAC scores, and outcomes at three time points. Continuous variables were compared using the T-test or Mann-Whitney test, and categorical variables using the Chi-square or Fisher's exact test. We used a linear regression model to investigate the relationship between rehabilitation duration and AMPAC scores. Quantile regression was preferred due to the non-normal distribution of the outcome, hospital-free days. Results: We conducted a linear regression analysis and found a statistically significant association between increased hours spent in PT and greater improvement. After one hour of physical therapy, there was an average increase of 1.07 (95% CI 0.1, 2; p=0.03) in AMPAC scoore. We also compared the change in the AMPAC score with hospital-free days, and it was statistically significant in quantile regression analysis, indicating an increase of 0.28 (95% CI 0.2, 0.55; P=0.03) points in the AMPAC Score, corresponding to an additional hospital-free day. Conclusion: Increased hours spent in physical therapy show a significant positive association with greater improvement in standardized AM-PAC Mobility scores and hospital-free days. These findings encourage increasing uptake and support of cardiac rehabilitation programs.

AbstractBackgroundPatients in the intensive care unit (ICU) often experience extended periods of immobility. Following hospital discharge, many face impaired mobility and never return to their baseline function. Although the benefits of physical and occupational rehabilitation are well established in non‐ICU patients, a paucity of work describes effective practices to alleviate ICU‐related declines in mobility.ObjectiveTo assess how rehabilitation with physical and occupational therapy (PT‐OT) during ICU stays affects patients' mobility, self‐care, and length of hospital stay.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingInpatient ICU.ParticipantsA total of 6628 adult patients who received physical rehabilitation across multiple sites (Arizona, Florida, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) of a single institution between January 2018 and December 2021.InterventionsNot applicable.Main Outcome MeasuresDescriptive statistics, linear regression models, and gradient boosting machine methods were used to determine the relationship between the amount of PT‐OT received and outcomes of hospital length of stay (LOS), Activity Measure for Post‐Acute Care Daily Activity and Basic Mobility scores.ResultsThe 6628 patients who met inclusion criteria received an average (median) of 23 (range: 1‐89) minutes of PT‐OT per day. Regression analyses showed each additional 10 minutes of PT‐OT per day was associated with a 1.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.41–1.66, p < .001) higher final Basic Mobility score, a 1.8% (95% CI: 1.30%–2.34%, p < .001) higher final Daily Activity score, and a 1.2‐day (95% CI: −1.28 to −1.09, p < .001) lower hospital LOS. One‐dimensional partial dependence plots revealed an exponential decrease in predicted LOS as minutes of PT‐OT received increased.ConclusionHigher rehabilitation minutes provided to patients in the ICU may reduce the LOS and improve patients' functional outcomes at discharge. The benefits of rehabilitation increased with increasing amounts of time of therapy received.