Digital home-based program to boost activity after hip replacement in older adults

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This is a three-armed, assessor-blinded randomized trial at Heidelberg University enrolling about 213 older adults undergoing total hip arthroplasty. Participants receive objective activity monitoring with a body-fixed sensor before surgery, at six weeks, and at six months postoperatively, and are randomized after the six-week visit to usual care, a 12-week tablet-based exercise program, or the same program plus personal coaching. The digital intervention delivers structured home exercises and the coaching arm uses behavioral change techniques such as goal setting, self-monitoring, and barrier management. The primary comparison is physical activity six months after surgery, with secondary analyses comparing the coached versus uncoached digital program.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Age ≥65 years
* Coxarthrosis with indication for total hip arthroplasty
* Residence within a radius of ≤50 km from Heidelberg
* Ability to walk ≥10 m (with/without walking aid)
* Access to the internet (Wi-Fi) at home
* Written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

* Insufficient German language skills
* Insufficient hearing to communicate via (video) telephone
* Insufficient vision to recognize study materials
* Contralateral coxarthrosis with indication for total hip arthroplasty
* Severe medical condition illnesses that compromise physical fitness (heart failure classified as New York Heart Association \[NYHA\] class ≥3, heart valve defects associated with syncope, cardiac arrhythmia with dizziness, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease \[COPD\] with oxygen therapy, cancer with chemotherapy and/or radiation, Parkinson's disease with rollator use \[Hoehn \& Yahr stage ≥4\])
* Living in a nursing home
* Planned major medical procedure within the next 6 months with inpatient hospital stay (e.g., further surgery)
* Simultaneous participation in another competing study
* Cognitive impairment (6-item Cognitive Impairment Test \[6CIT\] score \>7 points)

Where it's running

• Department of Orthopaedics, Heidelberg University Hospital
  Heidelberg, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany Recruiting

Study contacts

• Principal investigator: Tobias Reiner, PhD, MD — Department of Orthopaedics, Heidelberg University Hospital
• Study coordinator: Tobias Eckert, PhD
• Email: tobias.eckert@med.uni-heidelberg.de
• Phone: +49 (0)6221 319 1562

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How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.