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Medicina
Special Issues
Exercise Rehabilitation Strategies for Long-Term Conditions in the Post-Pandemic Era
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Exercise Rehabilitation Strategies for Long-Term Conditions in the Post-Pandemic Era

A special issue of Medicina (ISSN 1648-9144). This special issue belongs to the section "Epidemiology & Public Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 26 January 2026 | Viewed by 1351

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. David Varillas-Delgado

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Exercise and Sport Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, 28223 Pozuelo, Spain
Interests: sports performance; elite athletes; nutrition; ergogenic aids; genetics; nutrigenomic; microbiome; health sciences
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Sofía Laguarta-Val

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor Assistant
Department of Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28922 Madrid, Spain
Interests: long COVID; pain; therapeutic exercise; manual therapy; sports medicine; rehabilitation medicine; physiotherapy

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The SARS-coV-2 pandemic has exponentially increased the need for rehabilitation, not only for patients with acute forms of COVID-19, admitted to the ICU, but also for those with post-COVID syndrome and for those who suffer from long COVID, as the COVID-19 pandemic profoundly reduced their quality of life, hindered their ability to return to work, and dramatically increased symptoms such as fatigue. Patients with long COVID suffer from worsening symptoms after exercise, orthostatic tachycardia, and other problems, causing them to be unable to adhere to exercise programmes and thus requiring personalised prescriptions.

Concerning patients with long COVID specifically, the symptom that has most profoundly impaired their quality of life is fatigue. Patients report being told to exercise, but they then experience a worsening of symptoms post-exercise, often requiring days or weeks of recovery. Publications on therapeutic exercise have increased, but these rarely include clear dosing that would allow for trial replication, and the protocols are often too generic to meet research objectives.

To address this research need, we are interested in exercise programmes for cases of acute COVID-19 infection but are particularly interested in therapeutic exercise programmes for patients with post-COVID syndrome and long COVID. We are interested in personalized protocols, with great adherence, which is notoriously difficult to implement for patients suffering from fatigue. We believe this research can guide clinicians and physiotherapists in prescribing exercise in order to implement safe and successful programmes.

We welcome cutting-edge research on the topics of avant-garde rehabilitation medicine and physiotherapy, which should focus on personalised prescription programmes based on the physiological mechanisms underlying long COVID. We especially welcome randomised clinical trials that can respond to the needs of rehabilitation physicians and clinical physiotherapists, as well as to the pressing need to improve the quality of life of patients with long COVID and post-COVID syndrome.

Prof. Dr. David Varillas-Delgado
Guest Editor

Prof. Dr. Sofía Laguarta-Val
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Medicina is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • therapeutic exercise
  • long covid
  • post-COVID syndrome
  • sports medicine
  • rehabilitation medicine
  • physiotherapy

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 915 KB  
Article
Longer Health Resort Therapy Improves Outcomes in Long COVID: A Retrospective Study
by Grzegorz Onik and Karolina Sieroń
Medicina 2025, 61(9), 1686; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61091686 - 17 Sep 2025
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Abstract
Background and Objectives: The positive effect of health resort treatment on long COVID symptoms has been demonstrated. However, no previous study has considered therapy duration as a factor determining treatment effectiveness. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine whether the [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: The positive effect of health resort treatment on long COVID symptoms has been demonstrated. However, no previous study has considered therapy duration as a factor determining treatment effectiveness. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine whether the duration of treatment predicts its effectiveness in individuals with long COVID. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, medical records of 119 individuals (68 women and 51 men; mean age 63.04 ± 8.61 years) undergoing health resort treatment for long COVID were analyzed. Participants were divided into two groups based on therapy duration: shorter (Group 1) and prolonged (Group 2). Dyspnea was assessed using the mMRC scale, physical performance with the SPPB, and functional status with the PCFS scale. Additionally, individuals rated symptom severity on 0–10 point scales. Results: Improvement in functional status was greater in individuals with a prolonged stay at the health resort (Group 1: 0.59 ± 0.66 points; Group 2: 1.41 ± 0.65 points; p < 0.001). Changes in the severity of most long COVID symptoms were significantly greater in patients who stayed longer. An extended stay at the health resort was associated with significant improvement in functional status (β = 0.033, p = 0.003) and in most long COVID symptoms, particularly sleep disorders (β = 0.112, p < 0.0001), memory disorders (β = 0.104, p < 0.0001), and headaches (β = 0.103, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: A prolonged stay in a sanatorium exerts a favorable effect on symptom severity in individuals with long COVID. Comprehensive health resort treatment of approximately four weeks is associated with improved functional status and alleviation of neuropsychiatric symptoms. Nevertheless, given the retrospective design of the present study, prospective research is required to validate these findings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exercise Rehabilitation Strategies for Long-Term Conditions in the Post-Pandemic Era)
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10 pages, 272 KB  
Article
COVID-19 Alters Respiratory Function Associations in High-Level Athletes
by Banu Kabak, Murat Erdoğan, Erkan Tortu, Gökhan Deliceoğlu, Celal Bulgay, Oktay Kızar, Giyasettin Baydaş and Attila Szabo
Medicina 2025, 61(9), 1652; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61091652 - 11 Sep 2025
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Abstract
Background and Objectives: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected multiple physiological systems, including respiratory function, which is critical for athletic performance. Although alterations in pulmonary dynamics have been observed in high-level athletes recovering from COVID-19, the effects on respiratory function remain unclear. [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected multiple physiological systems, including respiratory function, which is critical for athletic performance. Although alterations in pulmonary dynamics have been observed in high-level athletes recovering from COVID-19, the effects on respiratory function remain unclear. In this context, the present study aimed to examine the impact of COVID-19 on the interrelationships among respiratory function parameters in high-level athletes. Materials and Methods: Sixty-eight high-level athletes participated in the present study, including 34 with a history of COVID-19 and 34 controls without prior infection. Respiratory function and respiratory muscle strength were assessed using a digital spirometer (Pony FX, Cosmed, Italy). Key variables included Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), Peak Expiratory Flow (PEF), Maximum Voluntary Ventilation (MVV), Forced Expiratory Volume in one second (FEV1), and Maximum Inspiratory/Expiratory Pressure (MIP/MEP). Results: High-level athletes with prior COVID-19 infection exhibited significant differences in the correlations (p < 0.05) between FVC and PEF, FVC and MVV, FEV1 and FEV1/FVC, and MIP and MVV compared to controls. Conclusions: These findings suggest that COVID-19 can disrupt the interrelationships among respiratory function parameters in high-level athletes, highlighting the need for further longitudinal investigations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exercise Rehabilitation Strategies for Long-Term Conditions in the Post-Pandemic Era)
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