Tele-Rehabilitative Exercise Training Program in Nurses With Long COVID

Effectiveness of a 8-week Tele-Rehabilitative Exercise Training Program on Fatigue, Symptom Severity, and Quality of Life in Nurses With Long COVID: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Long COVID can cause a decline in cardiorespiratory fitness, resulting in fatigue and negative impacts on individuals' quality of life (QoL), particularly in nurses who play a crucial role in public health. Combining with reduced cardiorespiratory fitness and suffering from a spectrum of long-COVID symptoms might substantially exaggertate fatigue, perceived stress, and reduce willingness to work for hospital nurses. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of tele-rehabilitative exercise on fatigue, perceived stress, symptom severity of long COVID, and QoL in this population.

The intervention is an extra 8-week tele-rehabilitative exercise program (3 aerobic and 2 strengthing exercise sessions/week at a moderate intensity, 30 min/session), monitored through a wearable devices and a mobile App. The evaluation of the rehabilitation results can be presented as a data chart, and the treatment effects are also clearly presented. Outcome measures were assessed at baseline, 4, and 8 weeks. Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured before and after the intervention via cardiopulmonary exercise tests.

Inclusion Criteria:

• nurses older than 20 years of age
• have reported a positive result on a COVID-19 rapid test or nucleic acid test
• one or more of the following symptoms for more than four weeks: fatigue, discomfort after physical or mental exertion, fever, cardiopulmonary symptoms such as difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, cough, chest pain, or palpitations (CDC, 2022)
• able to perform activities independently without assistance
• total score of 36 or higher on the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), confirming fatigue symptoms, and report that these symptoms either appeared after the infection or worsened following the infection

Exclusion Criteria:

• without the equipment to install a mobile application (APP)
• unsuitable for wearing devices due to any leg diseases
• unable to engage in aerobic or strength training due to neurological or musculoskeletal disorders
• pregnancy
• cancer
• absolute and relative contraindications for cardiopulmonary testing or exercise training
• unsuitable for participation in this study by a rehabilitation specialist;
• regular exercisers