Physiotherapy for patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support: How, When, and Who. An international EuroELSO survey.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) continues to play an essential role in organ support in cardiogenic shock or acute respiratory distress syndrome and bridging to transplantation. The main purpose of the present survey was to define which clinical and organizational practices are adopted for the administration of physiotherapy in adult patients undergoing ECMO support worldwide. METHODS: This international survey was conceived in November 2021. The survey launch was announced at the 10th EuroELSO (European ELSO chapter) Congress, London, May 2022. RESULTS: The survey returned 32 questionnaires from 29 centers across 14 countries. 17 centers (53.1%) had more than 30 intensive care unit beds available and most (46.8%) were able to care for five to 10 patients on extracorporeal life support simultaneously. The predominant physiotherapist-to-patient ratio was 1:>5 (37.5%); physiotherapy was available 5/7 days and 7/7 days by 31.2% and 25% respectively. Respiratory physiotherapy was not defined by a specific protocol in most centers (46.8%) while 31.2% declared that the treatment commences less than 12 h after sedation is stopped/reduced. Mostly, early physiotherapy in non-cooperative ventilated patients was provided within the first 48 h (68.6%) and consisted of as passive range of motion, in-bed positioning, and splinting. Postural passages and sitting were provided to patients and walking was included in those advanced motor activities which are part of the treatment. CONCLUSION: Physiotherapy in patients on ECLS is feasible, however substantial variability exists between centers with a trend of delivering not protocolized and understaffed rehabilitation practices.

Rehabilitation at the Time of Pandemic: Patient Journey Recommendations.

Purpose: The World Health Organization (WHO) declared severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) a pandemic in March 2020, causing almost 3.5 million coronavirus disease (COVID-19) related deaths worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed a significant burden on healthcare systems, economies, and social systems in many countries around the world. The access and delivery of rehabilitation care were severely disrupted, and patients have faced several challenges during the COVID-19 outbreak. These challenges include addressing new functional impairments faced by survivors of COVID-19 and infection prevention to avoid the virus spread to healthcare workers and other patients not infected with COVID-19. In this scoping review, we aim to develop rehabilitation recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic across the continuum of rehabilitation care. Materials and Methods: Established frameworks were used to guide the scoping review methodology. Medline, Embase, Pubmed, CINAHL databases from inception to August 1, 2020, and prominent rehabilitation organizations' websites were searched. Study Selection: We included articles and reports if they were focused on rehabilitation recommendations for COVID-19 survivors or the general population at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. Data Extraction: Two of our team members used the pre-tested data extraction form to extract data from included full-text articles. The strength and the quality of the extracted recommendations were evaluated by two reviewers using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation) approach. Results: We retrieved 6,468 citations, of which 2,086 were eligible after removing duplicates. We excluded 1,980 citations based on the title and the abstract. Of the screened full-text articles, we included 106 studies. We present recommendations based on the patient journey at the time of the pandemic. We assessed the evidence to be of overall fair quality and strong for the recommendations. Conclusion: We have combined the latest research results and accumulated expert opinions on rehabilitation to develop acute and post-acute rehabilitation recommendations in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Further updates are warranted in order to incorporate the emerging evidence into rehabilitation guidelines.

Rehabilitation in adult post-COVID-19 patients in post-acute care with Therapeutic Exercise.

COVID-19 patients may experience disability related to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission or due to immobilization. We assessed pre-post impact on physical performance of multi-component therapeutic exercise for post-COVID-19 rehabilitation in a post-acute care facility. A 30-minute daily multicomponent therapeutic exercise intervention combined resistance, endurance and balance training. Outcomes: Short Physical Performance Battery; Barthel Index, ability to walk unassisted and single leg stance. Clinical, functional and cognitive variables were collected. We included 33 patients (66.2±12.8 years). All outcomes improved significantly in the global sample (p<0.01). Post-ICU patients, who were younger than No ICU ones, experienced greater improvement in SPPB (4.4±2.1 vs 2.5±1.7, p<0.01) and gait speed (0.4±0.2 vs 0.2±0.1 m/sec, p<0.01). In conclusion, adults surviving COVID-19 improved their functional status, including those who required ICU stay. Our results emphasize the need to establish innovative rehabilitative strategies to reduce the negative functional outcomes of COVID-19.

Construction and Effect of Partnership Model of Rehabilitation for Patients with COVID-2019 in Critical Wards Using International Health Classifications Framework / 中国康复理论与实践

Objective:To construct a teamwork model, Partnership Rehabilitation Therapy (PRT), for therapists in critical wards for patients with Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), and observe its effect. Methods:PRT had been developed, in which one therapist (main) implementing therapy and another (assistant) monitoring and supporting in the treatment. Eleven COVID-19 patients from infectious critical ward were treated with PRT. The behavior safety of therapists was recorded during the treatment, and the patients were assessed with Borg Index, Cough Score, Miller Sputum Grading and World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS) 2.0 before and after treatment. Results:No physiotherapist was infected by COVID-19. Seven times of infection risks were recorded and avoided, and six times of treatment risks were corrected instantly. All the patients improved in Borg Index (P < 0.01), Cough Score (P < 0.05), Miller Sputum Grading (P = 0.02) and WHODAS 2.0 (P < 0.01) after a 1-week physical therapy. Conclusion:Based on the Family International Classifications, a teamwork model is established, which provides a safe and practicable way for rehabilitation for COVID-19 patients in critical wards.

How COVID-19 Patients Were Moved to Speak: A Rehabilitation Interdisciplinary Case Series.

Background: Up to 36% of patients admitted to the ICU for COVID-19 require tracheostomy. While the literature recommends the use of multidisciplinary teams in the management of patients with tracheostomy for other diseases, little is known on the collaborative administration of physical therapy and speech language pathology services in the COVID-19 population. Purpose: We sought to determine the outcomes of a collaboration between physical therapy (PT) and speech language pathology (SLP) in the treatment of patients who underwent tracheostomy placement as part of their treatment for COVID-19 at our facility. Methods: We conducted a retrospective case series on patients with COVID-19 who had a tracheostomy. We included patients who had undergone mechanical ventilation for 14 days or longer, had a surgical tracheostomy, been discharged from intensive care to a medical unit, and received PT and SLP referrals. We compiled retrospective data from electronic medical records, analyzing days from tracheostomy to achievement of PT and SLP functional milestones, including mobility, communication, and swallowing. Of six critically ill patients with COVID-19 who had tracheostomy placement at our facility, three met inclusion criteria: patient 1, a 33-year-old woman; patient 2, an 84-year-old man; and patient 3, an 81-year-old man. For all patients, PT interventions focused on breathing mechanics, secretion clearance, posture, sitting balance, and upper and lower extremity strengthening. SLP interventions focused on cognitive reorganization, verbal and nonverbal communication, secretion management, and swallowing function. Intensity and duration of the sessions were adapted according to patient response and level of fatigue. Results: We found that time to tracheostomy from intubation for the three patients was 23 days, 20 days, and 24 days, respectively. Time from tracheostomy insertion to weaning from ventilator was 9 days for patient 1, and 5 days for patient 2 and patient 3. Regarding time to achieve functional PT and SLP milestones, all patients achieved upright sitting with PT prior to achieving initial SLP milestone of voicing with finger occlusion. Variations in progression to swallowing trials were patient specific and due to respiratory instability, cognitive deficits, and limitations in production of an effortful swallow. Patient participation in therapy sessions improved following establishment of oral verbal communication. Conclusion: Interdisciplinary cooperation and synchronized implementation of PT and SLP interventions in three COVID-19 patients following prolonged intubation facilitated participation in treatment and achievement of functional milestones. Further study is warranted.

ICU rehabilitation is associated with reduced long-term mortality from sepsis in patients with low skeletal muscle mass: a case control study.

BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether intensive care unit (ICU)-rehabilitation reduces mortality from sepsis in low skeletal muscle mass. We evaluated whether the association of ICU-rehabilitation with mortality from sepsis differs between patients with and without low skeletal muscle mass. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 516 patients with sepsis who were admitted to the ICU between June 2011 and August 2017. The skeletal muscle area at the level of the third lumbar vertebra was measured with CT on admission. Patients were divided into two groups (low skeletal muscle mass and non-low skeletal muscle mass), and clinical outcomes were compared in patients treated with ICU-rehabilitation and without ICU-rehabilitation within each subgroup. We used Cox regression to examine factors associated with 1-year mortality in each subgroup. RESULTS: Low skeletal muscle mass was diagnosed in 421 (81.6%). ICU-rehabilitation was conducted to 51.1% low skeletal muscle mass patients and 54.7% non-low skeletal muscle mass patients. In the low skeletal muscle mass subgroup, in-hospital mortality (26.0% vs. 39.8%, P=0.003) and 6-month mortality (38.6% vs. 51.5%, P=0.008) were lower in the ICU-rehabilitation group. However, there were no differences in the non-low skeletal muscle mass group. In the multivariate analysis, ICU-rehabilitation was independently associated with reduced 1-year mortality in low skeletal muscle mass patients (HR: 0.66, 95% CI: 0.49-0.87, P=0.003), but not in non-low skeletal muscle mass patients. CONCLUSIONS: ICU-rehabilitation was independently associated with reduced 1-year mortality from sepsis among low skeletal muscle mass patients, but not among non-low skeletal muscle mass patients. Therefore, the delayed initiation of ICU-rehabilitation should be avoided, especially in low skeletal muscle mass patients.

Effect of neuromuscular stimulation and individualized rehabilitation on muscle strength in Intensive Care Unit survivors: A randomized trial.

PURPOSE: Intensive Care Unit (ICU) survivors experience muscle weakness leading to restrictions in functional ability. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) has been an alternative to exercise in critically ill patients. The aim of our study was to investigate its effects along with individualized rehabilitation on muscle strength of ICU survivors. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Following ICU discharge, 128 patients (age: 53±16years) were randomly assigned to daily NMES sessions and individualized rehabilitation (NMES group) or to control group. Muscle strength was assessed by the Medical Research Council (MRC) score and hand grip at hospital discharge. Secondary outcomes were functional ability and hospital length of stay. RESULTS: MRC, handgrip, functional status and hospital length of stay did not differ at hospital discharge between groups (p>0.05). ΔMRC% one and two weeks after ICU discharge tended to be higher in NMES group, while it was significant higher in NMES group of patients with ICU-acquired weakness at two weeks (p=0.05). CONCLUSIONS: NMES and personalized physiotherapy in ICU survivors did not result in greater improvement of muscle strength and functional status at hospital discharge. However, in patients with ICU-aw NMES may be effective. The potential benefits of rehabilitation strategies should be explored in larger number of patients in future studies. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: www.Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01717833.

ICU-Acquired Weakness.

Survivorship after critical illness is an increasingly important health-care concern as ICU use continues to increase while ICU mortality is decreasing. Survivors of critical illness experience marked disability and impairments in physical and cognitive function that persist for years after their initial ICU stay. Newfound impairment is associated with increased health-care costs and use, reductions in health-related quality of life, and prolonged unemployment. Weakness, critical illness neuropathy and/or myopathy, and muscle atrophy are common in patients who are critically ill, with up to 80% of patients admitted to the ICU developing some form of neuromuscular dysfunction. ICU-acquired weakness (ICUAW) is associated with longer durations of mechanical ventilation and hospitalization, along with greater functional impairment for survivors. Although there is increasing recognition of ICUAW as a clinical entity, significant knowledge gaps exist concerning identifying patients at high risk for its development and understanding its role in long-term outcomes after critical illness. This review addresses the epidemiologic and pathophysiologic aspects of ICUAW; highlights the diagnostic challenges associated with its diagnosis in patients who are critically ill; and proposes, to our knowledge, a novel strategy for identifying ICUAW.

Early Physical Rehabilitation in the ICU: A Review for the Neurohospitalist.

Advances in critical care have resulted in improved intensive care unit (ICU) mortality. However, improved ICU survival has resulted in a growing number of ICU survivors living with long-term sequelae of critical illness, such as impaired physical function and quality of life (QOL). In addition to critical illness, prolonged bed rest and immobility may lead to severe physical deconditioning and loss of muscle mass and muscle weakness. ICU-acquired weakness is associated with increased duration of mechanical ventilation and weaning, longer ICU and hospital stay, and increased mortality. These physical impairments may last for years after ICU discharge. Early Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) interventions in the ICU may attenuate or prevent the weakness and physical impairments occurring during critical illness. This article reviews the evidence regarding safety, feasibility, barriers, and benefits of early PM&R interventions in ICU patients and discusses the limited existing data on early PM&R in the neurological ICU and future directions for early PM&R in the ICU.