Feasibility of a Physiotherapy-led Follow-up Programme in Adult Critical Illness Survivors

Is a Physiotherapy-led Follow-up Programme Feasible in Adult Critical Illness Survivors After Discharge Home: A Single-center Trial

Survivors of critical illness might suffer from ongoing physical, cognitive and emotional impairments after being discharged home. Furthermore, several studies have shown that these patients might have a need for ongoing support. However, up until now, it is not known what the optimal follow-up programme for survivor of critical illness after discharge home should look like or which exact patient population would benefit the most. Due to these reasons, it is important to further investigate, how these patients can be optimally supported to recover from their critical illness.

The primary aim of this study is to assess, whether a physiotherapy-led follow-up programme is feasible in adult survivors of critical illness after discharge home in the county hospital of Winterthur.

Furthermore, the investigators evaluate the influence of this physiotherapy-led follow-up programme on health related quality of life, exercise capacity, general muscle strength, inspiratory muscle strength, anxiety and depression.

All of the anticipated 20 patients will partake in the follow-up programme, which will consist out of a nine weeks exercise programme and four education sessions. During the exercise programme, the patients will exercise twice per week under supervision and once by themselves. The supervised exercise sessions will consist out of a combination of a cardiopulmonary and strength training and the unsupervised session will be a physical activity, which the participants like doing. Furthermore, they will participate in education sessions, where they learn things about the intensive care unit, the post-intensive care syndrome, relaxation techniques and how to carry on with exercising.

The whole study will last about ten months and forms a part of a master thesis.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Signed informed consent after being informed
• Adult patient (>18 years), who was treated in the ICU of the county hospital of Winterthur and who was ventilated for longer than 48 hours
• Patient, who received inpatient rehabilitation and then was discharged home

Exclusion Criteria:

• Head or spinal cord injury, leading to neurological deficits
• Receiving palliative care
• Fractures diminishing mobility
• Principal diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Principal diagnosis of myocardial infarction, heart failure or reanimation
• Principal diagnosis of stroke or cerebral bleeding
• Previous diagnosis of dementia or cognitive impairment
• Inability of the participant to follow the procedures of the study, e.g. due to language problems, psychological disorders, etc.;
• Enrolment of the investigator, his/her family members, employees and other dependent persons