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Published on: September 30, 2020
COVID-19: Patient Characteristics in the First Phase of Postintensive Care Rehabilitation
Carolina M H Wiertz1, Wouter A J Vints1,2, Geert J C M Maas1,3
1Adelante Zorggroep, Hoensbroek, The Netherlands.
Objective:
To describe clinical characteristics of patients after intensive care unit (ICU) treatment for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who were admitted for inpatient rehabilitation.
Design:
A cross-sectional design.
Setting:
Inpatient rehabilitation care in the Netherlands.
Participants:
All post-ICU patients with COVID-19 admitted to the rehabilitation center between April 2 and May 13, 2020, were invited to participate in the study. Included were patients older than 18 years needing inpatient rehabilitation after ICU treatment for COVID-19 (N=60; mean age, 59.9y; 75% male).
Interventions:
Not applicable.
Main Outcome Measures:
The following information was collected in the first week of inpatient rehabilitation care: (1) demographics; (2) ICU stay parameters; (3) medical, physical, and functional characteristics; and (4) self-reported symptoms.
Results:
The most important findings for rehabilitation were the following: in the first week after discharge to the rehabilitation center, 38.3% of all patients experienced exercise-induced oxygen desaturation, in 72.7% muscle weakness was present in all major muscle groups, and 21.7% had a reduced mobility in 1 or both shoulders. Furthermore 40% had dysphagia, and 39.2% reported symptoms of anxiety.
Conclusion:
Post-ICU patients with COVID-19 display physical and anxiety symptoms as reported in other post-ICU patient groups. However, this study showed some remarkable clinical characteristics of post-ICU patients with COVID-19. Rehabilitation programs need to anticipate on this. Long-term follow-up studies are necessary.
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