The Kidney Beam Clinical Trial: Evaluating a digital health intervention to enhance physical activity in people with CKM disease
The Kidney Beam trial evaluated the clinical effect of a 12-week physical activity digital health intervention on health-related quality of life for people with cardio-kidney-metabolic (CKM) conditions.
The trial sought to provide a digital health solution to improve the sedentary behaviour, physical inactivity, and poor health-related quality of life that are typical of chronic conditions, particularly for people with CKM disease. It also aimed to evaluate the clinical value and cost effectiveness of physical activity and wellbeing interventions delivered on the Beam digital platform.
About the trial
A single-blind, randomised controlled trial conducted at 11 hospitals in the UK, with 340 adult participants with CKM disease recruited and randomly assigned to the Kidney Beam physical activity digital health intervention, or a waiting list control group.
Participants were given access to a specialised 12 week digital rehabilitation programme - created by clinicians from King’s College Hospital London - comprising online exercise classes, condition-specific education, nutrition advice, and virtual health coaching. Classes were delivered by physiotherapists and those with lived experience of the condition.
The trial showed significant improvements in mental health, self-reported health-related quality of life, and self-management behaviour from the patient cohort given access to the rehabilitation intervention. The intervention was shown to improve:
Mental health & physical function
Ability to self-manage care
Symptoms of fatigue, anxiety & depression
Social engagement & reduction in social isolation
In addition to the patient benefits, the intervention demonstrated significant cost efficiencies, outlined below.
Cost benefits
We commissioned an independent health economic team, Swart Evaluation, in partnership with UCL Partners, to conduct a budget impact estimation based on the outcomes of the clinical trial. This analysis found the average impact of the targeted 12 week programme was a reduction in cost of £580 per patient, with savings driven across a range of health system touchpoints:
£425 in out-patient attendances
£95 in-patient days
£32 in primary and community care
£19 A&E attendances
£7 in social care contacts
£2 in medication spend
These savings represent a reduction of between 8-12% of the average annual cost of a patient with CKM. A return on investment of 1:6 was identified - meaning that for every £1 spent on the intervention, the benefit to the health provider is £6. The digital programme was deemed the most cost effective of the viable solutions that could support a national rollout, with the provision being 88% cheaper than standing up a face-to-face service. The programme was also evidenced as creating minimal additional workload for existing services, and also in preventing additional demand.
Read the full results of the trial
You can read the Kidney Beam clinical trial results in full in the Lancet Digital Health.