Hydrogen Therapy Shows Promise for Post-COVID Fatigue Relief

TL;DR

A lot of people who had COVID-19 deal with extreme tiredness months later, and researchers found that older people, women, and those with depression or anxiety are more likely to experience it. The good news is that treatments like physical therapy, special breathing exercises, and oxygen therapy seem to help people feel less tired and get stronger, but doctors need to do bigger studies to figure out which treatments work best.

Key Finding

Molecular hydrogen inhalation showed beneficial effects on physical function (measured by a 6-minute walking test) and respiratory function in patients with post-COVID-19 fatigue, though the evidence comes from small, mostly uncontrolled studies.

Summary

This review examined 20 studies involving over 5,600 people to understand fatigue that persists after COVID-19 infection. Researchers found that older age, being female, severe initial infection, multiple existing health conditions, and prior depression or anxiety increased the risk of developing long-term fatigue. Several treatments showed promise in small studies, including breathing in molecular hydrogen gas, which improved walking ability and breathing function in some patients.

Practical Takeaway

While this review mentions that hydrogen inhalation may help with post-COVID fatigue symptoms, the evidence is limited to small studies without proper control groups. Larger, well-designed clinical trials in humans are needed before hydrogen can be recommended as a treatment. Physical therapy combined with psychological support also showed promise and may be worth discussing with a healthcare provider.

Abstract (excerpt)

Fatigue is recognized as one of the most commonly presented long-term complaints in individuals previously infected with SARS-CoV-2. This systematic review was performed to describe symptoms, etiology, possible risk factors related to post-COVID-19 fatigue and the therapeutic approaches used…

Read the full abstract via DOI