• Zeynal Yasacı, Rustem Mustafaoglu, Ozlem Ozgur, Berna Kuveloglu, Yasemin Esen, Ozge Ozmen, and Ebru Yılmaz Yalcinkaya.
• Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Health Sciences, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey. zeynalyasaci@gmail.com.
• Ir J Med Sci. 2025 Feb 8.

BackgroundPost-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) causes persistent symptoms that impair quality of life, and telerehabilitation (TR) provides an effective remote alternative for addressing these challenges.AimThis study aimed to evaluate the effects of a TR-based exercise program on dyspnea, pain intensity, and functional capacity in individuals with PCS.DesignSixty PCS patients were randomized into a telerehabilitation group (TG, n = 32) or a control group (CG, n = 28). The TG received supervised TR sessions twice a week for 6 weeks, while the CG performed unsupervised home exercises. Assessments were conducted at the baseline and the end of 6 weeks.ResultsTG showed significantly greater improvements compared to CG. mMRC decreased by 1.16 (95% CI, 0.93-1.38) vs. 0.36 (95% CI, 0.17-0.55), NPRS by 1.44 (95% CI, 0.95-1.92) vs. 0.6 (95% CI, 0.28-0.93), and 5-TST improved by 6.8 s (95% CI, 5.59-8.01) vs. 2.12 s (95% CI, 1.08-3.17). Significant differences were also observed for PSQI (p = 0.018) and HADS-anxiety (p = 0.001).ConclusionsA TR-based exercise program significantly reduced dyspnea and pain intensity while improving functional capacity in PCS patients, making it an effective alternative to unsupervised exercise regimens.Trial RegistrationThis study is prospectively registered at NCT05381675 ( clinicaltrials.gov ).© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Royal Academy of Medicine in Ireland.

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