What did we hope to find out in the REACT-KID study?
For people with kidney failure, choosing between dialysis and a kidney transplant is a life-changing decision. While many patients benefit from transplant, others may do better with dialysis. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to know which option is best for each individual.
Currently, doctors often rely on patients’ own reports of their physical activity levels and how well they manage everyday tasks when deciding if they are fit for transplant. But this information can be difficult to recall and may not reflect someone’s true day-to-day activity.
The Recorded Exercise, Activity, and Cardiovascular Tracking for Kidney Transplant Impact and Decision-making (REACT-KID) study set out to explore whether wearable technology could help. We want to see if heart rate and physical activity data from a wrist-worn wearable could:
Provide an accurate, objective picture of patients’ physical activity before transplant
Show how recovery and physical activity levels change after transplant
Be linked to other important outcomes such as health-related quality of life, cognition, kidney function, and hospital stays
Support better, evidence-based decisions about treatment
What does taking part in the study involve?
Read and download the REACT-KID Participant Information Sheet.
Patients in REACT-KID:
Wear a wrist-worn wearable for 7 days after their transplant assessment clinic appointment and again for 7 days, four months after their kidney transplant
Complete a quality of life questionnaire and a short cognitive assessment at both time points
The wearable assesses minute-by-minute heart rate and movement, but only displays the time watch face. This means patients are not distracted or worried by any information.
The study does not involve any extra hospital visits. Patients are given a prepaid, addressed envelope to return the wearable once they have finished wearing it
Who can take part?
Read and download the REACT-KID Participant Information Sheet.
To be eligible to take part in the REACT-KID study, patients:
Are 18 years or older
Are referred to the Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) renal transplant assessment clinic
Are considered suitable for kidney transplant and planned to be added to the transplant waiting list
Are able to give informed consent
