Studies role of physical therapy in recovery from Covid-19

The coronavirus pandemic has the world in its grip. Worldwide, more than 265 million cases of Covid-19 have been registered, and more than 5.2 million people have died from it. About 14% of people infected with Covid-19 end up in hospital and some require intensive care. These patients face lung problems, neurological disorders, reduced physical capacity, muscle weakness and psychological and cognitive impairment. Emma De Keersmaecker and a team from the UZ Brussel and VUB's Rehabilitation Research group investigated how these complications can be countered with the right physiotherapeutic treatment. De Keersmaecker: "We were able to establish that physical therapy during recovery from Covid-19 has a positive effect on patients' lung function, physical fitness and psychosocial well-being. This makes the physiotherapist indispensable during rehabilitation after Covid-19." Until now, guidelines for the physiotherapy treatment of Covid-19 patients were often based on the opinion of experts or on previous studies in patients with other, similar lung diseases.