Physiotherapy Department, Faculty of Health Professions, Al-Quds University, Jerusalem, Palestine.
Department of Medical Imaging, Faculty of Applied Medical Health, Palestine Ahliya University, Bethlehem, Palestine.
Physiother Res Int. 2024 Oct;29(4):e2136. doi: 10.1002/pri.2136.
COVID-19 is a highly contagious virus that causes pneumonia, which quickly progresses to acute respiratory distress. In the case of COVID-19, physiotherapy is critical in non-invasive support management, postural changes, chest physiotherapy (CPT), and bed mobility. This study aims to look into the effects of physiotherapy intervention on functional outcome levels in COVID-19 patients in the acute stage.
A total of 60 severe COVID-19 patients (54 males and 6 females) with a mean age of 50 years were studied. The intervention group (n = 30) had two daily physiotherapy sessions that included positioning, CPT, cardio exercises, breathing exercises, and early mobility, whereas the control group (n = 30) received only standard medical care. Patients were tested twice at the baseline and discharge using peripheral oxygen saturation, respiratory rate (RR) test, dyspnea rate, two-min walk test, and spirometer scores, forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1).
The two groups improved significantly between the baseline and discharge ratings. The intervention group, on the other hand, significantly improved all outcome indicators at discharge (p-value = 0.00). This study found that physiotherapy management improved oxygen saturation, RR, dyspnea, and lung function tests in COVID-19 patients except in FVC (p-value = 0.402) and FEV1(p-value = 0.114).
Physiotherapist interventions with COVID-19 patients increase respiratory function and treatment time.
COVID-19 是一种高度传染性病毒，会导致肺炎，进而迅速发展为急性呼吸窘迫。在 COVID-19 的情况下，物理疗法在非侵入性支持管理、体位改变、胸部物理疗法（CPT）和床上活动能力方面至关重要。本研究旨在探讨物理治疗干预对急性 COVID-19 患者功能结局水平的影响。
共研究了 60 名严重 COVID-19 患者（54 名男性和 6 名女性），平均年龄为 50 岁。干预组（n=30）每天进行两次物理治疗，包括定位、CPT、心肺运动、呼吸练习和早期活动，而对照组（n=30）仅接受标准医疗护理。患者在基线和出院时使用外周血氧饱和度、呼吸频率（RR）测试、呼吸困难率、两分钟步行测试和肺活量计评分、用力肺活量（FVC）和第一秒用力呼气量（FEV1）进行了两次测试。
两组在基线和出院时的评分均有显著改善。然而，干预组在出院时所有结局指标均显著改善（p 值=0.00）。本研究发现，物理治疗管理改善了 COVID-19 患者的氧饱和度、RR、呼吸困难和肺功能测试，但 FVC（p 值=0.402）和 FEV1（p 值=0.114）除外。
对 COVID-19 患者进行物理治疗师干预可提高呼吸功能和治疗时间。
