Introduction:

In patients with severe or critical COVID-19, the use of prednisone and musculoskeletal and respiratory rehabilitation has been described. The role of these interventions and the optimal time for their initiation are not clearly established. This study presents the results of the Rehabilitation Unit of the Banco de Seguro del Estado Hospital, which implemented a comprehensive rehabilitation program and the use of corticosteroids in the subacute stage of patients with severe or critical post-COVID-19, with a systematic approach, working interdisciplinary and centered on the person being treated. Findings at admission, oxygen requirement, Barthel scale, tomographic patterns, use of corticosteroids, their response, and complications are reported. The results of this approach on clinical, respiratory, and functional variables are described.

Method:

Descriptive, retrospective study of post-COVID-19 patients who completed rehabilitation at the Rehabilitation Unit of the Banco de Seguros del Estado Hospital (URHBSE) in the period April-August 2021. Data obtained from review of medical records, statistical analysis with PRISM (v8.2.1).

Results:

Eighty-four patients completed the rehabilitation program. Upon admission to the URHBSE, 55% had total or severe dependence on the Barthel scale. Forty-eight percent were unable to walk. Eighty-nine-point two percent required oxygen, with a mean saturation of 90.3 ± 4.8. Twenty-five percent of patients were admitted requiring a reservoir mask.

All patients who entered the program were in the subacute phase of the disease (4 to 12 weeks) and received a comprehensive and individualized rehabilitation plan. The objective was to achieve a functional situation similar to what they had before COVID-19. The length of stay at the URHBSE was 23.5 ± 13.8 days.

A total of 76 patients (90.5%) underwent high-resolution chest tomography (HRCT), which was pathological in 96.1% of cases. The predominant findings were ground-glass opacity in 49.3% of cases, consolidation in 8.23%, and a fibrosis-like pattern in 30.13%. “Non-typical” post-COVID damage tomographic alterations were detected (pleural effusion, cavitary nodules, apical cavities, etc.) in 11.8% of the tomographies. In 2 patients (2.6%), pulmonary aspergillosis was found, and in 6.6%, pulmonary thromboembolism.

Forty-four patients (52.3%) received prednisone. In 63.4% of cases, oxygen supplementation was discontinued within the first 15 days from the start of prednisone. We found an association between the ground-glass opacity tomographic pattern and early discontinuation of oxygen supplementation from the start of prednisone (p = 0.047). Despite the high degree of colonization, we did not observe infections by colonizing microorganisms, even in those who used prednisone.

Comparing admission and discharge, statistically significant differences were found in the following parameters: degree of dyspnea, oxygen requirement (only one patient was discharged with oxygen), saturation, degree of instrumentation (tracheostomy, nasogastric tube, etc.), and the Barthel dependency scale.

Regarding respiratory variables, we only have data on the presence of dyspnea in the first 35 patients. Of these, 83% had dyspnea at admission, while only 17% had it at discharge (p < 0.0001). There were also significant differences in the oxygen requirement between admission and discharge (p < 0.0001) and in the degree of dependency measured on the Barthel scale. Fifty-five percent of patients had total or severe dependence at admission, compared to only 3.4% at discharge.

Conclusions:

The interventions carried out in the subacute stage of the disease were associated with significant improvements in clinical variables of interest. More studies are needed to define the role and the exact timing of the initiation of corticosteroids and rehabilitation in this group of patients.

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