JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

COVID-19 pandemic increased the need to develop long-term remote rehabilitative programs. Most existing telerehabilitation platforms focus on rehabilitating upper limbs, balance, and cognitive training, but exercises improving cardiovascular fitness are often neglected.

Objective:

To evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of a telerehabilitation intervention combining cognitive and aerobic exercises.

Methods:

A virtual reality-based dual-task exercise exploiting a cycle-ergometer was integrated with a commercially available telerehabilitation platform. Patients with different conditions were enrolled and administered subjective questionnaires. Their therapists were interviewed.

Results:

Twenty-six patients with neurological or post-COVID symptoms were included. Their attitude toward technology (3.44, iqr: 0.63) did not change after the training period (3.50, iqr: 0.48); the platform was rated usable and acceptable. Frustration and physical and mental workload were present, especially among younger participants. The adherence was moderate, but individual differences were present (0.59, iqr: 0.54). The therapists highlighted the potential of remote rehabilitation programs but also identified some limitations.

Conclusions:

This study proved the feasibility and acceptability of a customized VR-based telerehabilitation program allowing for the safe implementation of aerobic cycling-based dual-task training. The solution was judged meaningful for de-hospitalized patients, although ome environmental and technical barriers should be overcome to implement telerehabilitation more effectively.