Six-Week Hospital-Based Pulmonary Rehabilitation in Covid Pneumonia ICU Survivors: Experience from a Tertiary Care Center in Central India

Rehabilitation in Survivors of COVID-19 (RE2SCUE): a non-randomized, controlled and open study

“…In our study, dyspnea was significantly reduced only in the face-to-face rehabilitation group. Khurana et al 27 also observed symptom improvement for rehabilitation participants, with a mean reduction of −2.0±0.6 points on the Medical Research Council Modified Dyspnea Scale (mMRC), significantly greater ( p =0.01) than −1.3±0.8 points in the control group. These findings demonstrate the potential effect of rehabilitation on dyspnea caused by COVID-19, which appears to improve with exercise.…”

“…However, there was no control group to compare and establish the treatment efficacy. In another 6-week aerobic and strength exercise rehabilitation study for critically ill COVID-19 survivors reduced dyspnea and increased exercise capacity were observed for the rehabilitation group (n=13; 57.6 ± 10.1 years) and for the control group (n=13; 56.8 ± 8.7 years), which did not exercise 27 .…”

“…In the study by Khurana et al 27 , the 6-week rehabilitation was started between the first and fourth week of ICU discharge, with aerobic exercises at 70% of the speed achieved in the 6MWT, resistance exercises for the quadriceps and upper limbs, and breathing exercises for lung expansion. The 14 participants in the intervention group (57.6±10.1 years) were compared with 13 in the control group (56.8±8.7 years).…”

“…The effects of rehabilitation in treating patients with persistent symptoms of COVID-19 have not been fully elucidated 24 . In addition, evidence has shown an effect on physical function in elderly 25 or hospitalized subjects 24,26,27 , with few references to cognitive aspects 28 . In this sense, the present study aimed to evaluate the effects of a face-to-face physical exercise rehabilitation program in patients with persistent symptoms of COVID-19 on fatigue and dyspnea, exercise capacity, pulmonary function, functional status, cognitive function, symptoms of anxiety and depression, and peripheral muscle strength.…”

The heart and SARS-CoV-2

“…A correct system-based history taking and a detailed physical examination will be the starting point of our study. The use of simple scales, such as the Borg or mMRC, will take minimal time and help to quantify the situation 43 , 44 . As a rule, the routine complementary tests performed in these patients are usually normal and show no evidence of organ involvement: lung X-rays and CT scans, echocardiography, and even NT-ProBNP levels do not usually provide pathological findings in persistent patients.…”