Beyond pharmacotherapy in IBD: feasibility and patient-reported benefits of a six-week multimodal rehabilitation pilot

• IBD is frequently associated with persistent disability, fatigue, and impaired quality of life despite optimized medical therapy. • A short, hospital-based multimodal rehabilitation programme is feasible and safe in adults with IBD. • The programme leads to clinically meaningful improvements in disability, quality of life, and disease-related knowledge. • Benefits are partly maintained at 12 months, supporting lifestyle-oriented rehabilitation as a complement to pharmacologic care. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is often associated with fatigue and reduced quality of life, which are not fully addressed by pharmacologic therapy. Evidence for lifestyle interventions remains limited. We evaluated the feasibility and patient-reported effects of a multimodal rehabilitation program to assess its impact on disability, quality of life, and functional outcomes. We conducted a prospective study in adults with IBD referred perioperatively or after a severe flare. The 6-week programme comprised two supervised weekly sessions combining physical activity, education workshops, and individual dietary counselling. Assessments were performed at baseline (W0), end-of-programme (W6), and month 12 (M12). Primary endpoint was the change in IBD-Disk score at W6 (0–100; higher = greater disability). Secondary outcomes included SF-36 quality of life (0–100; higher = better), ECIPE disease-knowledge score (0–39; higher = better), functional capacity tests, biomarkers, and safety. Thirty-seven patients were included. No serious adverse events occurred. Disability improved significantly at W6 (IBD-Disk −11.9 points; 95%CI −16.9 to −6.9; p=5 × 10⁻⁵), with 55.6% responders (≥0.5 SD). Quality of life increased (+13.0 points on SF-36; p=1.1 × 10⁻⁴), and disease knowledge markedly improved (+7.63 ECIPE; p=1.9 × 10⁻⁹). Physical activity (≥18/45 active patients) increased from 47.2% to 87.5% at W6 (p=1.39 × 10⁻⁶). Functional outcomes improved statistically significantly. Biomarkers remained stable. Exploratory analyses at 12 months suggested that improvements were partially sustained. A short multimodal rehabilitation program is feasible, safe, and associated with improvements in disability, quality of life, disease knowledge, and physical performance. These findings support the need for larger controlled trials to confirm the effectiveness and long-term sustainability of lifestyle-oriented rehabilitation strategies in IBD care.