Effectiveness of physical, psychological, and alternative interventions for post-COVID-19 condition: a systematic review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2340/jrm.v58.46279Keywords:
exercise therapy, fatigue, post-acute COVID-19 syndrome, quality of life, rehabilitationAbstract
Objective: To evaluate supervised physical, psycho-logical, and alternative non-pharmacological interventions for improving patient-reported and objective functional outcomes in adults with post-COVID-19 condition.
Design: Systematic review of randomized controlled trials.
Methods: PubMed, Web of Science Core Collection, APA PsycInfo, and Scopus were searched from 1 January 2020 to 29 January 2026. Eligible studies were supervised, face-to-face trials evaluating physical, psychological, or alternative non-pharmacological interventions against usual care, placebo/sham, or active comparators in adults with World Health Organization defined post-COVID-19 condition. Risk of bias was assessed using Cochrane RoB 2. Due to clinical and methodological heterogeneity, a narrative synthesis was performed.
Results: 27 trials (1,998 participants) were included and evaluated physical, psychological, and alternative therapies. Supervised cardiopulmonary rehabilitation and multimodal exercise consistently improved cardiorespiratory fitness and walking capacity. Cognitive-behavioural therapy and lifestyle adjustments significantly reduced fatigue and subjective concentration complaints. Findings for neuromodulation, complementary, and oxygen therapies were heterogeneous, often showing no benefit over placebo. Only 18.5% of trials had low risk of bias, limited by small samples, unblinding, and short follow-ups.
Conclusion: Supervised physical rehabilitation and CBT show promising evidence for improving functional capacity and symptoms in post-COVID-19 condition. Larger trials with longer follow-up are needed to confirm effectiveness and inform clinical guidelines.
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