Table 1.
Preliminary results
| Control group (n=8) | Intervention group (n=10) | |
| Demographics/comorbidities | ||
| Age (years) | 78.25 (SD 5.4) | 78.20 (SD 5.5) |
| Female sex | 2 (25%) | 1 (10%) |
| ASA score=III (n) | 2 (25%) | 2 (20%) |
| ASA score ≥IV (n) | 6 (75%) | 8 (80%) |
| Fried Frailty Scale (n) | 1.9 (SD 1.1) | 2.1 (SD 1.2) |
| Smoking (y/n) | 1 (12.5%) | 0 (0%) |
| Anaemia (y/n) | 2 (25%) | 4 (40%) |
| Nutritional deficit (NRS-2002≥3) (y/n) | 2 (25%) | 1 (10%) |
| Ischaemic heart disease or chronic heart failure (y/n) | 4 (50%) | 6 (60%) |
| Diabetes (y/n) | 3 (37.5%) | 3 (30%) |
| Obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) (y/n) | 1 (12.5%) | 1 (10%) |
| Surgical procedure | ||
| Cardiac | 2 | 3 |
| Orthopaedic | 0 | 1 |
| Thoracic | 0 | 1 |
| Urologic | 3 | 4 |
| Vascular | 2 | 1 |
| Visceral | 1 | 0 |
| Use of ECC (y/n) | 2 (25%) | 3 (30%) |
| P-POSSUM (baseline) | 43.3 (SD 6.5) | 45.2 (SD 8.2) |
| Days to surgery (days) | 29.8 (SD 19.7) | 28.5 (SD 9.3) |
| Laboratory parameters (baseline) | ||
| Haemoglobin (g/L) | 136.8 (SD 16.3) | 126.9 (SD 13.8) |
| NT-proBNP (pg/mL) | 3677.4 (SD 5022.3) | 886.8 (SD 881.5) |
| Albumin (g/L) | 33.3 (SD 3.9) | 36.0 (SD 2.3) |
| Prealbumin (g/L) | 0.22 (SD 0.04) | 0.25 (SD 0.06) |
| HbA1c (%) | 6.0 (SD 0.7) | 6.4 (SD 1.4) |
| Creatinine (mmol/L) | 147.9 (SD 51.5) | 131.0 (SD 53.4) |
| Fitness | ||
| MIP (cmH20) | 51.3 (SD 28.0) | 46.9 (SD 16.1) |
| AT (mL/min/kg) | 9.8 (SD 1.0) | 9.1 (SD 1.3) |
| VO2peak (mL/min/kg) | 12.7 (SD 1.4) | 11.8 (SD 2.8) |
| Questionnaires | ||
| STAI (n) | 10.6 (SD 2.4) | 13 (SD3.9) |
| DASI (n) | 4.1 (SD 0.8) | 4.6 (SD 1.4) |
ASA, American Society of Anesthesiologists; AT, anaerobic threshold; BMI, body mass index; DASI, Duke Activity Status Index; ECC, extracorporeal circulation; HbA1c, glycated haemoglobin; MIP, maximum inspiratory pressure; NRS-2002, Nutritional Risk Screening 2002; NT-proBNP, N-terminal-pro hormone brain-derived natriuretic peptide; STAI, state-trait anxiety inventory.