Dropouts in Exercise Rehabilitation Program in Patients With Long COVID: A Systematic Review.

Abstract

The aim of the study was to describe dropout rates, reasons, and factors associated with dropout during rehabilitation programs for patients with long COVID. A search was conducted in PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science. Clinical trials were included that involved exercise programs lasting at least 4 weeks and focused on long-COVID patients aged 18 or older of both sexes, reporting on dropouts and their reasons. The TESTEX scale assessed study quality. Data on patients, interventions, and dropout rates were extracted and presented as frequencies. Twenty-three studies with 1523 patients (mean age 53.0 ± 6.4 yrs, 51% female) were included. Overall, 14% ( n = 216) of long-COVID patients dropped out. Reasons included health problems (23%), incomplete assessments (19%), loss of interest (16%), lack of adherence (7%), adherence to other interventions (4%), and 31% unreported. The dropout rate was significantly higher in 2020 compared to 2021 ( P = 0.039), while no significant associations were observed between the dropout rate and other variables. Exercise rehabilitation studies for long-COVID patients show a 14% dropout rate, with the most common reasons being health-related issues and incomplete assessments.