Publication date: Jun 13, 2025
Background/Objectives: Supervised pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is effective in improving cardiorespiratory fitness in non-hospitalised individuals with long COVID. However, there is limited evidence regarding PR-induced improvements in cardiorespiratory parameters in previously hospitalised COVID-19 survivors. This study aimed to investigate the effect of a hybrid PR programme (outpatient followed by a digital intervention) on exercise tolerance, cardiorespiratory adaptations, functional capacity and quality of life outcomes in previously hospitalised COVID-19 survivors. Methods: Forty-two patients (age (mean +/- SD): 57 +/- 12 yrs) with excessive fatigue due to long COVID (FACIT score (26 +/- 10) were allocated to PR (n = 27) or usual care (UC) (n = 15) 140 +/- 75 days from hospital discharge. PR consisted of 8 outpatient sessions (twice weekly for 4 weeks) followed by 24 home-based sessions (3 times/week for 8 weeks). Patients in the UC group were instructed to be physically active. Exercise tolerance was assessed by cardiopulmonary cycling testing to the limit of tolerance. Results: Following the completion of the hybrid PR programme, peak work rate (WRpeak) and peak oxygen uptake (VOpeak) were, respectively, improved in the PR group by 19 +/- 10 Watt (p = 0. 001) and by 2. 4 +/- 3. 0 mL/kg/min (p = 0. 001). Furthermore, in the PR group, the 6 min walk distance was increased by 72 +/- 69 metres (p = 0. 001). FACIT and mMRC scores were also improved in the PR group by 15 +/- 10 (p = 0. 001) and by 1. 4 +/- 1. 0 (p = 0. 001), respectively. In the UC group, only the mMRC score was improved by 0. 7 +/- 1. 0 (p = 0. 008). Conclusions: The application of a hybrid PR programme was beneficial in improving cardiorespiratory exercise fitness, functional capacity and quality of life in previously hospitalised COVID-19 survivors.
Open Access PDF
| Concepts | Keywords |
|---|---|
| Beneficial | cardiorespiratory responses |
| Covid | COVID-19 survivors |
| Cycling | pulmonary rehabilitation |
| Outpatient | |
| Weekly |
Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | Long COVID |
| disease | MESH | COVID-19 |
| disease | IDO | intervention |
| disease | IDO | quality |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Oxygen |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Coenzyme M |
| disease | MESH | infection |
| disease | MESH | joint pain |
| disease | MESH | memory loss |
| disease | MESH | brain fog |
| disease | IDO | symptom |
| disease | MESH | emergency |
| disease | MESH | respiratory failure |
| disease | MESH | congestive heart failure |
| disease | MESH | psychiatric illness |
| disease | IDO | history |
| disease | MESH | cancer |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Methionine |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Nitrogen |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Carbon monoxide |
| disease | MESH | anxiety |
| disease | MESH | depression |
| disease | MESH | ramp |
| disease | IDO | blood |