Do Functional Capacity, Fatigue and Dyspnea Change in the Post-Acute Period According to Severity of COVID-19?

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The aim of this study was to examine the functional capacity, fatigue severity, impact of fatigue and severity of dyspnea in the first month after discharge in patients with moderate-to-critical groups of COVID-19. METHODS: This observational, descriptive and analytical study included participants divided into three groups, moderate (n=31), severe (n=32), and critical (n=29), according to the initial disease severity. These parameters were evaluated with the 6-minute walk test (6MWT), 30-second sit-to-stand test (30secSTS), the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), the Fatigue Impact Scale (FIS) and the Modified Medical Research Council Dyspnea Scale (mMRC), respectively. RESULTS: As the disease severity increased, a significant decrease was found in the walking distance of the 6 MWT and the number of full stands of the 30secSTS, respectively (p=0.003, p<0.001). The mean scores of FIS and FSS were higher in the critical group (p<0.001). The rate of patients in mMRC grade 2 was higher in the severe and critical groups (46.9% and 58.6%, respectively). CONCLUSION: The results revealed that the critical COVID-19 group had lower functional capacity, and higher severity of fatigue, the effect of fatigue, and the severity of dyspnea. Studies with longer follow-up periods are needed in which symptoms are analyzed with evaluation parameters.