Clinic for Lung Diseases Jordanovac, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Jordanovac 104, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia, E-mail:
Psychiatr Danub. 2021 Spring-Summer;33(Suppl 4):565-571.
Coronavirus-2 pandemic has changed the functioning of health systems worldwide. It is not yet fully known which symptoms of the disease are most commonly presented in patients referred for pulmonary rehabilitation. Our aim was to investigate the profile of patients referred for pulmonary rehabilitation; what symptoms they had during the acute phase of the disease and what symptoms were still present at the start of pulmonary rehabilitation.
Study included ongoing symptomatic and post-COVID patients who attended standard, in person pulmonary rehabilitation program. Patients had COVID-19 disease at least four weeks before attending pulmonary rehabilitation. Patients completed questionnaires of self-reported somatic deficits during acute and post-COVID-19 stage as well as questionnaires regarding their psychological symptoms. Pulmonary function test, expiratory and inspiratory muscle strenght, hand grip strenght and six-minute walk test was performed prior and after pulmonary rehabilitation.
Study included 63 patients (32 male, 31 female), with mean age of 52.9 years. During acute COVID-19, majority of patients complained of fatigue, cough, dyspnea, myalgia and headache. More than 85% of patients reported pulmonary deficits during ongoing symptomatic and post-COVID-19 stage. Emotional distress and anxiety levels were significantly elevated in acute stage, while depression, anger and the need for help was not significantly elevated. All reported symptoms were significantly reduced in post-COVID-19 stage. There was statistically significant difference in six-minute walk distance, inspiratory and expiratory muscle strenght and hand grip strenght between first and final testing.
Results of our study are similar with previous studies, the most common symptoms during acute phase were fatigue, cough and dyspnea and fatigue and respiratory problems during ongoing symptomatic and post-COVID stage. Emotional distress diminishes signifiacantly in post-COVID stage. Further larger studies are needed to clarify which acute disease symptoms are predominant in patients referred to pulmonary rehabilitation and cause prolongued discomfort.
冠状病毒-2 大流行改变了全球卫生系统的运作方式。目前还不完全清楚哪些疾病症状在接受肺康复治疗的患者中最常见。我们的目的是调查接受肺康复治疗的患者的特征；他们在疾病急性期有哪些症状，以及在开始肺康复时仍存在哪些症状。
该研究纳入了正在接受症状性和 COVID 后患者参加标准的面对面肺康复计划。患者在参加肺康复前至少有四周的 COVID-19 疾病史。患者在急性和 COVID 后阶段完成了自我报告的躯体缺陷问卷以及心理症状问卷。在肺康复前后进行了肺功能测试、呼气和吸气肌肉力量、手握力和六分钟步行测试。
该研究纳入了 63 名患者（32 名男性，31 名女性），平均年龄为 52.9 岁。在急性 COVID-19 期间，大多数患者抱怨疲劳、咳嗽、呼吸困难、肌痛和头痛。超过 85%的患者在持续症状性和 COVID 后阶段报告有肺部缺陷。在急性阶段，情绪困扰和焦虑水平显著升高，而抑郁、愤怒和需要帮助的程度没有显著升高。所有报告的症状在 COVID 后阶段都显著减轻。在第一次和最后一次测试之间，六分钟步行距离、吸气和呼气肌肉力量以及手握力存在统计学上的显著差异。
我们的研究结果与之前的研究相似，急性阶段最常见的症状是疲劳、咳嗽和呼吸困难，而在持续症状性和 COVID 后阶段则是疲劳和呼吸问题。情绪困扰在 COVID 后阶段显著减轻。需要进一步进行更大规模的研究，以明确哪些急性疾病症状在接受肺康复治疗的患者中更为常见，并导致长时间不适。
