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Prehabilitation for High-Risk Surgical Patients

  • Surgical Care (F Luchette, Section Editor)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose of Review

Prehabilitation of high-risk surgical patients is an evolving area. The purpose of this review is to describe the scope of prehabilitation programs and their impact on surgical outcomes.

Recent Findings

Prehabilitation interventions optimize a patient for surgery improving physical capabilities, focusing on strengthening respiratory mechanics, enhancing nutrition, and boosting mental strength. There is great variation on how prehabilitation programs are implemented leading to mixed results. The research, specifically in the geriatric population, is promising with a reduction in postoperative complications including mortality.

Summary

An optimal prehabilitation program should meet the needs of the specific patient population. Based on the available literature, a prehabilitation algorithm that focuses on enhancing a patient’s physical, nutritional, and mental status prior to surgery is proposed. Larger studies are needed to evaluate the impact of prehabilitation programs in high-risk geriatric patients and surgical outcomes.

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References

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S. First Ave., Maywood, IL, 60153, USA

    Purvi P. Patel

  2. Division of Trauma, Critical Care and Burns, Department of Surgery, Loyola University Medical Center, 2160 S. First Ave., Maywood, IL, 60153, USA

    Fredrick A. Luchette

  3. Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital, 5000 5th Ave, Hines, IL, 60141, USA

    Fredrick A. Luchette

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The authors did not receive support from any organization for the submitted work. The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Surgical Care

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Patel, P.P., Luchette, F.A. Prehabilitation for High-Risk Surgical Patients. Curr Geri Rep 10, 182–186 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13670-021-00371-9

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