BRIDGE Trial: Embedding Consumer-grade mHealth Technologies Into Cardiac Rehabilitation

Summary

The purpose of the BRIDGE study is to learn whether supplementing traditional center-based cardiac rehabilitation (CBCR) with a mobile health technology intervention can help patients monitor their health, stay engaged in healthy lifestyle behaviors, better manage cardiovascular risk factors, and improve overall health outcomes.

Cardiac rehabilitation is an evidence-based outpatient program designed to help people recover from heart-related conditions through supervised exercise, education, counseling, and support for healthy lifestyle changes. Although cardiac rehabilitation is highly recommended and beneficial, many patients do not receive the full benefits of the program. Some patients attend fewer sessions than recommended, and many find it difficult to maintain healthy habits outside of the clinic, such as regular physical activity, heart-healthy eating, taking medications as prescribed, monitoring blood pressure, and managing weight.

This study will test whether combining CBCR with mobile health tools may improve participation and support healthy behaviors at home. Mobile health tools include mobile phone applications, connected devices such as a weight scale, blood pressure monitor, and activity tracker, as well as personalized text messages designed to encourage and support healthy self-care.

This study will help determine whether these mobile health tools can make cardiac rehabilitation more effective and help patients maintain healthy behaviors beyond the clinic setting.

Conditions

• Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI)
• Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI)
• Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery (CABG)
• Chronic Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction (HFrEF)
• Heart Valve Repair or Replacement
• Stable Angina Pectoris

Interventions

OTHER

CBCR

The CBCR program at UI Health is a structured, medically supervised secondary prevention program for patients with qualifying cardiovascular conditions. It includes individualized aerobic and resistance exercise training, clinical monitoring during exercise sessions, education on heart disease and risk factor management, counseling to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors, and support for long-term adherence to prescribed treatment and self-care recommendations. Participants are encouraged to attend up to 36 supervised sessions over \~12 weeks.

BEHAVIORAL

BRIDGE mHealth intervention

Description: The intervention includes three commercially available mHealth apps and devices: Withings Body Composition weight scale, Withings BP monitor, and Fitbit Charge 6 activity tracker along with their companion mobile apps. Each app incorporates behavior change tools that support daily self-monitoring, feedback, and reminders across key cardiac rehabilitation domains, including physical activity, weight and blood pressure management, and cardiovascular risk factor reduction. Participants will also receive up to five individually tailored text messages per week throughout the intervention period. Messages will be individualized based on (1) patient responses to validated questionnaires administered at baseline and (2) patient-generated health data from the app/devices. Messages will target physical activity, healthy eating, weight management, blood pressure control, and cardiovascular risk reduction.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)

  collaborator NIH

• University of Illinois at Chicago

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Spyros Kitsiou, PhD · University of Illinois at Chicago

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-09-01

Primary Completion

2027-03-30

Completion

2027-07-30