Improvements seen in symptoms of fatigue, breathing difficulties, 6-minute walk test with EECP treatment<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
MONDAY, Feb. 28, 2022 (HealthDay News) — For patients with “long COVID,” enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) treatment is associated with improvement in symptoms, including fatigue and breathing difficulties, according to a study presented at the American College of Cardiology virtual Cardiovascular Summit, held Feb. 16 to 19.<\/p>\n
Mohanakrishnan Sathyamoorthy, M.D., from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, and colleagues conducted a retrospective evaluation of electronic health records of patients referred to EECP treatment. All patients had long COVID symptoms, with or without coronary artery disease (CAD). Thirty-three patients (18 with long COVID only; 15 with long-COVID with CAD) with a minimum of 15 hours of EECP therapy (one hour\/day) were included.<\/p>\n
The researchers observed significant improvement in the Seattle Angina Questionnaire-7 summary score, the Duke Activity Status Index, the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Fatigue score, and the 6-minute walk test. A significant decrease was seen in the Rose Dyspnea Scale. Patients with long COVID only had a significant change from baseline for all end points. No significant difference was seen for patients with long COVID with CAD versus those without CAD.<\/p>\n
“All patients at this point were able to successfully return back to work after undergoing treatment,” a coauthor said in a statement. “These patients also showed improvement in ‘brain fog,’ which is a common symptom of long COVID. We are excited about continuing to analyze this data and share it in the future.”<\/p>\n
Press Release<\/a><\/p>\n