Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Long COVID
Conditions
Keywords
cardiorespiratory, exercise, virtual rehabilitation, post COVID-19 syndrome, fatigue, physiotherapy, post-COVID affection, post-COVID condition
Brief summary
Telerehabilitation is a great alternative to offering care during a global pandemic. 85% of patients with COVID-19 report persistent symptoms up to 8 months after the infection. There are no clear recommendations for post-covid rehabilitation. The aims of the study are (1) to test the logistic aspect of implanting a hybrid rehabilitation program and (2) to evaluate the acceptability and the potential impact of the program on treating patients with functional limitations and persistent fatigue symptoms. It's a pre and post-study without a control group.
Detailed description
Telerehabilitation is a great alternative to offering care during a global pandemic. 85% of patients with COVID-19 report persistent symptoms up to 8 months after the infection. There are no clear recommendations for post-covid rehabilitation. The aims of the study are (1) to test the logistic aspect of implanting a hybrid rehabilitation program and (2) to evaluate the acceptability and the potential impact of the program on treating patients with functional limitations and persistent fatigue symptoms. It's a pre and post-study without a control group. The intervention will be based on cardiopulmonary rehabilitation principles and will be administered for 12 weeks. Fatigue, post-exertional malaise, and functional/exercise capacities will be evaluated.
Interventions
OTHERTelerehabilitation program based on cardiorespiratory principles
The intervention consists of a hybrid program. The participant will receive rehabilitation sessions in presence (aerobic component of the intervention based on maximal oxygen uptake measured before intervention by means on a ergospirometric test) and at home via a telerehabilitation platform. The length of the intervention is 12 weeks. For the in-presence sessions, they are going to be 75 minutes, 2x/week. For the at-distance sessions, they are going to be 45 minutes, 1x/week in groups of 3 to 4 participants. The intervention will consist of a warm-up, endurance, postural, and strengthening exercises, cool down and respiratory exercises. An exercise book with final recommendations is provided to the participants at the end of the intervention.
Sponsors
Hotel Dieu Hospital
Université de Sherbrooke
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Intervention model description
The study design is a pre-post without a control group
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
25 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Living in the community * Living near Sherbrooke (\<50km) * Having a diagnostic of COVID-19 confirmed (PCR) and post-COVID syndrome (according to the World Health Organization criteria) * Being aged between 25 and 65 years old * Having access to internet at home * Living with a family member/caregiver or having a telephone or a medical alert system (in case of emergency) * Reporting persistent fatigue symptoms according to the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) (score≥4/7) * Reporting functional limitations according to the Post-COVID-19 Functional Status scale (PCFS (score ≥2/4); * Being able to give free and informed consent (adequate understanding of the study protocol); * Agreeing to perform a pulmonary function test, an exercise stress test, and an ergospirometric exercise test (adequate understanding of steps and procedures); * Having a low exercise capacity and moderate-to-severe cardiovascular risk \<7 metabolic equivalent of a task (MET) or ≤9 if significant reduction of self-reported exercise tolerance according to the stress test performed on a treadmill - Cornell protocol); * Having no other potential explanatory causes for fatigue or reduced exercise capacity according to medical evaluation
Exclusion criteria
* Cognitive impairment: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) ≤24/30 * Inability to perform or understand study procedures * Medical contraindication
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| The feasibility of the program | 12 weeks | This will be evaluated by % of participants that accept to participate in the study (recruitment rate), % who completed the intervention (retention rate) and % completed session/anticipated session (adherence). The security of the program will be evaluated by the number of falls or near fall. Technical difficulty |
| Acceptability | 12 weeks | The satisfaction of the participants will be evaluated with a questionnaire (14 questions). The questionnaire will assess patients' satisfaction with the professional, the services and the organization - Telemedicine Satisfaction. Qualitative open-ended questions will be used to determine appreciation and challenges encountered. |
| Fatigue and post-exercise malaise | 12 weeks | This will be evaluated with the Fatigue severity scare and De Paul Symptom Questionnaire. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Heart rate variability (resting) | 12 weeks | Measured with the POLAR H10 |
| Lower-limb endurance (estimated) | 12 weeks | 1-minute sit-to-stand test |
| Functional capacity | 12 weeks | Strength, assistance with walking, rising from a chair, climbing stairs, and falls questionnaire (SARC-F) |
| Exercise capacity | 12 weeks | 6-minute walk test |
Countries
Canada
Outcome results
None listed