Cardio Heart Connect: Protocol for a Randomized Trial of a Commercially Available mHealth Fitness Intervention for Cardiac Rehabilitation After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement

The Cardio Heart Connect study is a randomized trial designed to test the effectiveness of commercially available fitness programs in improving physical activity and cardiovascular health in patients after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). The study will enroll 200 patients from the University of Colorado Hospital who are waiting for traditional cardiac rehabilitation. Participants will be randomly assigned to either the Cardio Heart Connect intervention group or a control group. The primary outcome will be daily steps measured by smartwatch accelerometer, with secondary outcomes including functional capacity, quality of life, and cardiovascular health status. The intervention lasts 8 weeks with follow-up at 12 months. This research will demonstrate whether commercial mobile health applications are an effective tool to promote physical activity in TAVR patients.