{
  "abstract": "Background While exercise-based rehabilitation has shown to improve short-term outcomes in post-COVID syndrome following an acute hospitalisation compared to usual care (UC) (Daynes et al; Eur Respir J 2025; 10.1183/13993003.02152–2024), its long-term effects remain unclear.Aim To determine the long-term effects of a face-to-face (F2F) exercise-based rehabilitation programme compared to UC over a period of 26±3 months post-intervention in previously hospitalised COVID-19 survivors.Methods Participants who took part in the PHOSP-Rehabilitation RCT ( ISRCTN10980107/ISRCTN13293865) comparing an 8-week supervised rehabilitation programme (consisting of individualised prescribed exercise and education) to usual care at Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust, were invited for a follow-up assessment. The outcomes included change in performance on the Incremental Shuttle Walking Test (ISWT), health-related quality of life (EQ-5D-5L), anxiety and depression scores (GAD-7 and PHQ-9), Quadriceps muscle force (QMVC) and handgrip strength, dyspnoea (Dyspnea-12), fatigue (FACIT-Fatigue Scale), and the short physical performance battery (SPPB) test.Results A total of 23 participants have completed the follow-up visit to date: 12 in the face-to-face (F2F) group (mean age: 70 ± 6 years) and 11 in the usual care (UC) group (mean age: 68 ± 10 years). A two-way repeated measures ANOVA revealed a significant group-by-time interaction only for the ISWT (p=0.02) and the EQ-5D-5L Utility Index (UI) (p=0.05) ( figure 1). Post hoc within group analysis (Bonferroni-adjusted) revealed a significant decrease (p=0.001) in the ISWT between baseline and follow up in the UC group (by 127.14 m; 95% CI: -196.09 to -58.19), whereas the decrease in the F2F group (by -58.33 m; CI: -132.8 to 16.14) was not significant (p=0.15). No significant within-group changes were found for EQ-5D-5L UI scores. Compared to baseline, clinically meaningful improvements were observed at follow-up in QMVC in the F2F group compared to the UC group (mean difference: 5.47 kg; 95% CI: 0.68 to 10.25), and in Dyspnea-12 scores (mean difference: 4.91; 95% CI: 0.45 to 9.21).Abstract S141 Figure 1Data points (mean±SEM) are shown at baseline, post-intervention discharge and follow up in the F2F group (closed circles) and the UC group (open circles) for the ISWT and the EQ-5D-5L UIConclusion The long-term outcomes of an exercise-based rehabilitation programme are superior to usual care in terms of exercise capacity, quality of life, leg strength and dyspnoea symptoms.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Sports, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "S Chakraverty"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Sports, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "E Hume"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Sports, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "D Megaritis"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Sports, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "G Cucato"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Sports, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "E Neto"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK"
      ],
      "name": "E Daynes"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK"
      ],
      "name": "R Evans"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK"
      ],
      "name": "S Singh"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Translational and Clinical Research Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "C Echevarria"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Sports, Exercise and Rehabilitation, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "I Vogiatzis"
    }
  ],
  "title": "S141 An interim analysis of the long-term outcomes of an exercise-based rehabilitation programme in previously hospitalised COVID-19 survivors",
  "uid": "630af97a-0867-5df4-8984-d64de25a7310"
}