10 years of prehabilitation: From theory to clinical practice

Abstract

In recent years, prehabilitation has generated high expectations as an innovative preoperative strategy to enhance clinical outcomes following surgery. Several studies have demonstrated that multimodal programs are effective in improving patients' health status and cardiopulmonary reserve, allowing them to undergo surgery in better conditions and, consequently, reducing the incidence of postoperative complications. Most publications describe proof-of-concept studies, and literature about their implementation is more limited. The implementation of these programs requires new resources and significant organizational effort. In this paper, we share our experience implementing a multimodal prehabilitation program as a mainstream service at a tertiary hospital. Although there are still many unknowns regarding the optimal selection of patients, as well as the duration and components of the program, this article describes our journey in this field, aiming to provide insight for teams interested in developing a similar project.

Keywords: Cirugía mayor; Complicaciones postoperatorias; Implementación; Implementation; Major surgery; Optimización preoperatoria; Postoperative complications; Prehabilitación; Prehabilitation; Preoperative optimization.