The Hip Instructional Prehabilitation Program for Enhanced Recovery (HIPPER) as an eHealth Approach to Presurgical Hip Replacement Education: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

BackgroundOsteoarthritis (OA), leading to hip replacement (THR), is a primary contributor to global mobility impairment. In 2018, more than 59,000 THR surgeries were performed in Canada. Health promotion education, such as prehabilitation, is vital to optimizing surgical outcomes. ObjectiveThis study aims to evaluate the feasibility of the Hip Instructional Prehabilitation Program for Enhanced Recovery (HIPPER), an eHealth approach to prehabilitation education. MethodsA single-blind (assessor-blind), 2-arm, feasibility randomized controlled trial will be conducted. We will recruit 40 (HIPPER group, n=20; control group, n=20) older adults with hip OA and on a waitlist for a THR. The HIPPER intervention consists of 12 online, interactive modules. The control group will receive the current standard practice consisting of 2 online educational sessions lasting 2 hours each (webinars). Feasibility outcomes (eg, recruitment and retention rates) will be evaluated. ResultsRecruitment started in March 2021. As of April 20, 2021, 18 participants were recruited. All 18 completed T1 measures. Only 1 participant has been scheduled to have a surgery and therefore has been scheduled to complete T2 measures. The remainder of the participants are waiting to be notified of their surgery date. This project was funded by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Project Grant. Our institute’s research ethics board approved this study in November 2016. ConclusionsResults will lead to refinement of the HIPPER protocol in order to evaluate a standardized and geographically accessible prehabilitation program. Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02969512; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02969512 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/29322