9. Estimations of the size of the sample
During our initial trial, the main objective indicated that the positive outcome was 58% (18/31) among the RIPC group, whereas it was 43% (15/35) in the control group. The size of the sample was determined based on a significance level of 0.05, a statistical power of 80%, and a 10% attrition rate. Subsequently, a total of 294 individuals were registered, with an equal distribution of 147 participants in both groups.