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Research Snapshot Theater: Cardiovascular, Adult VIII

Steps Toward Recovery: Prehabilitation Performance and Post-Transplant Ventilator Liberation

Monday, March 23, 2026
2:30 PM - 3:30 PM Central Time
Location: Connections Central - RST 02

  • Saurabh Sujanyal, MBBS

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • Anek Jena, n/a

    Illinois

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • AP

    Aayushi Pareek, MD

    Research Trainee
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • Rosa Corro, MD (she/her/hers)

    Mayo Clinic Hospital in Florida, Florida

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • JD

    Jose Delgado, MD

    Research Fellow
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • SB

    Said Bateh, B.S

    Research Trainee
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • FS

    Faiz Saleem, MD

    Research Fellow
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • Aryan Pathak, BS (he/him/his)

    Florida

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • Vrutti Patel, BS (she/her/hers)

    Florida

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • Ivan Huespe, MD

    Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • PA

    Penny Amoroso, n/a

    Lead RN
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • SV

    Sara Vilela, RN

    Registered Nurse, ICU
    Mayo Clinic Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • KB

    Kimberly Britton, RN

    Lead RN
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • RH

    Rachel Hannon, APRN

    Lead Nurse Practitioner
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • RG

    Rohan Goswami, MD

    Program Director, Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • ML

    Melissa Lyle, MD

    Transplant Cardiologist
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • PP

    Parag Patel, MD

    Chair, Heart Failure and Transplant
    Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • PM

    Pablo Moreno Franco, MD

    Chair, Critical Care Medicine
    Mayo Foundation for Medical Education

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • Devang Sanghavi, MD, MHA

    Mayo Clinic Hospital in Florida, Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • AS

    Anna Shapiro, MD

    Consultant, Anesthesiology and Critical Care
    Mayo Clinic Florida

    Disclosure information not submitted.

Introduction: Patients awaiting heart transplantation often experience rapid physical deconditioning, particularly when supported with mechanical circulatory devices. While prehabilitation programs have shown promising results, its impact on post-transplant recovery remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate whether walking capacity during prehabilitation is associated with time to ventilator liberation following heart transplantation.


Methods: This retrospective cohort study includes 65 patients who received heart transplants and had an Impella 5.5 device and enrolled in prehabilitation program before transplant, between April 1st, 2022, and September 30th, 2024. To evaluate the relationship between walking distance and time to ventilator liberation, defined as cessation of invasive mechanical ventilation, we used a Fine–Gray model. The model was adjusted for days of Impella‑assisted prehabilitation before transplant, SOFA score at Impella insertion, patient age, and NYHA class at Impella insertion.


Results: The mean age was 54.9 ± 13.1 years and 83.1 % (n = 54) were men. Patients were stratified by their best single-day walking performance during prehabilitation in < 1,600 ft (low capacity, n = 20), 1,600–2,400 ft (intermediate, n = 22), and > 2,400 ft (high, n = 23). In the crude Fine–Gray model, every additional lap completed increased the sub‑distribution hazard of ventilator liberation by about 1 % (sHR 1.01, 95 % CI 1.01 – 1.02, p = 0.01). This association remained in the adjusted model as well (adjusted sHR 1.02, 95 % CI 1.01 – 1.02, p = 0.01), indicating that higher walking capacity independently predicted fewer days on mechanical ventilation.


Conclusions: Higher walking capacity during Impella-supported prehabilitation was independently associated with earlier liberation from mechanical ventilation after heart transplantation. These findings support the integration of structured mobility programs into pretransplant care to enhance postoperative recovery. Further prospective studies are needed to validate these results and inform standardized prehabilitation protocols