PHYSIOTHERAPY IN REHABILITATION OF PATIENTS AFTER HOSPITALIZATION DUE TO COVID-19: A SCOPING SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

S. Beqaj^1,2, A. Mačak Hadžiomerović², A. Pašalić², A. Jaganjac²

¹Faculty of Medicine/University of Prishtina, Department of Physiotherapy, Pristina, Kosovo, ²Faculty of Health Studies/University of Sarajevo, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Background: Patients with moderate to severe courses of COVID-19 may develop several complications including fatigue, muscle weakness, joint stiffness, decreased mobility, and impaired quality of life. Physiotherapy is considered vital in rehabilitation of COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to scope the literature which identified the use of supervised physiotherapy and clinically evaluated its outcomes in patients with COVID-19 after hospitalization.

Methods: Pubmed, MEDLINE, PEDro, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched up to June 2022 to identify eligible intervention studies that examined the outcome of physiotherapy in improvement of post – COVID-19 impairments following discharge from hospital. Identified studies underwent data extraction, data synthesis, and assessment of risk of bias.

Results: Ten non-randomized studies that provided pre- and post-treatment measurements were included. Due to large heterogeneity a qualitative, narrative approach was utilized. Findings of interest were categorized into the following themes: physical performance, respiratory capacity, activities of daily living and functionality, and health-related quality of life. It can be conveyed that physiotherapeutic interventions induce improvement in pulmonary, physical, and functional abilities of post-COVID-19 patients after hospitalization. Due to a large variability in sample size, type and duration of intervention, and measures used in the studies, conclusions derived from the present study are limited.

Conclusions: Quality randomized control trials and other research providing high-quality evidence-based data are imperative to draw more credible conclusions. Inclusion of evaluation of effect of physiotherapy on quality of life of post – COVID-19 patients is recommended for future studies.

Implications: Many countries have issued national guidelines for one-to-one or self-management physiotherapy interventions for individuals with COVID-19.However, considering the novelty of SARS-CoV-2 and lack of randomized controlled clinical trials involving rehabilitation of COVID-19 patients, the current recommended treatment methods and outcome measures to evaluate the effects on respiratory and physical function and quality of life are those largely founded on the established evidence of other respiratory illnesses. Hence, research providing high quality evidence-based data are warranted for development of international clinical guidelines for physiotherapy and rehabilitation support for patients who have been hospitalized for COVID-19.

Funding acknowledgements: The research was unfunded.

Keywords:
Post-COVID-19
Physiotherapy
Rehabilitation

Topics:
COVID-19
Cardiorespiratory
Disability & rehabilitation

Did this work require ethics approval? No

Reason: The ethics approval was not required because this work is a systematic scoping review.