Trial reportPloS one2023
Safety and efficacy of pulmonary physiotherapy in hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia (PPTCOVID study): A prospective, randomised, single-blind, controlled trial.
Trial report in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 7 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Efficacy of Pulmonary Physiotherapy on Hospitalized Patients With Novel Coronavirus 2019 Pneumonia
The Efficacy of Tele-Physiotherapy in Patients After COVID-19 Hospitalization: The PPTCOVID Study
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.
- Comparison of Preprint Postings of Randomized Clinical Trials on COVID-19 and Corresponding Published Journal Articles: A Systematic Review.JAMA network open · 2023Pooled it
- Effect of pulmonary rehabilitation for patients with long COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Therapeutic advances in respiratory diseasePooled it
- Incentive Spirometer in COVID-19: A Systematic Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- The Effort, Dyspnea, and Cooperation Scores in Mild and Moderate Post-COVID-19 Patients: Results of a Retrospective Study.Advances in respiratory medicine · 2025Article
- Efficacy of early pulmonary rehabilitation in severe and critically ill COVID-19 patients: a retrospective cohort study.BMC pulmonary medicine · 2025Article
- Safety and Efficacy of Incentive Spirometer in Covid-19 Pneumonia; a Randomized Clinical Trial.Archives of academic emergency medicine · 2024Article
- Vibroacoustic therapy in the treatment of patients with COVID-19 complicated by respiratory failure: a pilot randomized controlled trial.Frontiers in medicine · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPulmonary physiotherapy (PPT) is an important treatment in the management of patients with different types of pulmonary disorders. We aimed to evaluate safety and efficacy of PPT in hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia.
methodsIn this randomised, single-blind, controlled trial, we enrolled hospitalized, non-intubated patients (18 to 75 years with oxygen saturation (Spo2) in free-air breathing ≤90%) with COVID-19 pneumonia at a referral hospital. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive PPT (six sessions PPT with breathing exercises and airway clearance techniques) or basic care. The primary outcomes were venous blood O2 (pO2) and CO2 (pCO2) pressures, Spo2, and three-minute walking test (3MWT) that were assessed before and end of sixth session. Secondary outcomes included level of dyspnea, venous blood PH, one-month mortality, three-month mortality and short form-36 (SF-36) after one and three months. The assessor was blinded to the assignment. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04357340).
findingsIn April-May 2020, 40 participants were randomly assigned to PPT or basic care groups. While at the end of intervention, pO2 (adjusted mean difference to baseline measure (AMD) 6.43 mmHg [95%CI 2.8, 10.07], P<0.01), Spo2 (AMD 4.43% [95%CI 2.04, 6.83], P = 0.0011), and 3MTW (AMD 91.44 m [95%CI 68.88, 113.99], P<0.01) were higher in PPT group and basic care group, pCO2 was not improved (AMD -2.1 mmHg [95%CI-6.36, 2.21], P = 0.33). Based on the logistic model adjusted to baseline Spo2, the risks of mortality were reduced 81% ([95%CI: 97% reduction to 30% increase], P = .09) and 84% ([95%CI 74% reduction to 5% increase], P = .06) at one-month and three-month, respectively. There were no significant differences in most SF-36 domains scores after one and three months. No serious adverse event was observed during PPT sessions.
conclusionEarly PPT can be considered a safe and relatively effective therapeutic choice for patients with severe COVID-19.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.