Article ID: 2025-001
Purpose: To clarify the progress of respiratory and physical function and activities of daily living (ADL) in patients with severe COVID-19 disease 6 months and 1 year after onset.
Methods: The subjects were patients with severe COVID-19 disease, who were discharged from the intensive care unit through the convalescent rehabilitation ward. Their basic attributes, respiratory and physical function, and ADL 6 months and 1 year after onset were investigated.
Results: Thirteen patients showed improvement in vital capacity, volume in 1 second, Medical Research Council Scoring (MRC score), grip strength, knee extension muscle strength, 6-minute walking distance, and The Nagasaki university Respiratory ADL Questionnaire (NRADL) from 6 months after onset to 1 year after onset. After 1 year, 3 patients required home oxygen therapy, and 5 patients answered in the interview that their ADL had recovered to pre-symptomatic ADL.
Conclusion: Respiratory and physical function and ADL may improve in patients with severe COVID-19 disease from 6 months to 1 year after onset, but it is possible that ADL may not return to pre-symptomatic levels even 1 year later.
