Background Physiotherapeutic interventions have been widely used in the rehabilitation of individuals with persistent symptoms following COVID-19. However, uncertainties remain regarding their effects on respiratory and functional outcomes.Methods A systematic review with meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, Embase, PEDro, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and the Virtual Health Library databases. Interventions were categorized by therapeutic characteristics and comparator type. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane RoB 1 tool, and certainty of evidence was evaluated using the GRADE approach.Results Thirty-two studies involving 1710 participants were included. Inspiratory muscle training was associated with improvements in the inspiratory muscle strength. Multimodal pulmonary rehabilitation strategies were associated with potential improvements in pulmonary function, dyspnea, functionalcapacity, and the physical component of quality of life.Conclusion Physiotherapeutic interventions may improve in respiratory and functional outcomes in individuals with persistent symptoms following COVID-19. However, heterogeneity among studies and the low certainty of evidence for some outcomes limit more definitive conclusions.
Modena et al. (Tue,) studied this question.