Impact of a water-based exercise intervention on fatigue and quality of life in post-covid-19 patients

Šajber, Dorica (author), Gilić Škugor, Barbara (author), Marčun, Robert (author)

Recovery from COVID-19 can involve long-lasting symptoms such as fatigue and reduced quality of life. Water-based exercise programs may be appropriate for improving these outcomes, but their effectiveness has not been explored in post-COVID-19 patients. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of an 8-week water-based exercise program on fatigue levels and quality of life in postCOVID-19 patients. A total of 21 (15 females, 6 males) post-COVID-19 patients aged 58.15±17.71 years completed water-based exercises twice weekly for eight weeks. Fatigue was assessed via the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI-20), and quality of life was measured via the EQ-5D-5L questionnaire. Changes were analyzed pre- and post-intervention using matched-pairs Wilcoxon test and factorial analysis of variance. Fatigue levels showed minimal changes overall, as they were low (MFI total score of 53.43±10.54 pre-intervention). Most participants had good quality of life scores, with no issues in self-care or daily activity. However, overall health status remained unchanged, possibly due to participants’ good pre-intervention health (score of 77.06±17.59 pre-intervention). Water-based exercise programs can help maintain quality of life and fatigue levels in post-COVID-19 patients. These findings highlight their role as safe, inclusive, and supportive rehabilitation options, especially for individuals recovering from mild to moderate COVID-19. Future studies should explore longer interventions and more serious conditions to further explore the benefits of water-based exercises.

• Language: Multilingual
• Keywords: sport, COVID-19, therapeutic exercise, aquatic exercise, rehabilitation, physical capacity, recreation
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FŠ - Faculty of Sport
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: Str. 14-26
• Numbering: Letn. 17, supl. 1
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-185645
• UDC: 797.21
• ISSN on article: 1989-6239
• DOI: 10.58727/jshr.111605
• COBISS.SI-ID: 244782339

Copyright

Podatek o licenci CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 je naveden na pristajalni strani članka (glej zgoraj izvorni URL). (Datum opombe: 14.8. 2026)

Note

šport, covid-19, terapevtska vadba, vodna vadba, rehabilitacija, telesna zmogljivost, rekreacija

• Publication date in RUL: 14.08.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Journal of sport and health research
• Shortened title: J. sport health res.
• Publisher: D.A.A.
• ISSN: 1989-6239
• COBISS.SI-ID: 523238425

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
• Description: A Creative Commons license that bans commercial use and requires the user to release any modified works under this license.

Secondary language

• Language: Spanish
• Title: Impacto de una intervención de ejercicio acuático sobre la fatiga y la calidad de vida en pacientes post-covid-19

Abstract

Objetivos; Material y métodos; Resultados; Discusión; Conclusiones.

Projects

• Funder: Other - Other funder or multiple funders
• Funding programme: ERASMUS SPORT-2021-SSCP Small scale partnerships
• Project number: 101050089
• Name: EU-funded collaborative post-COVID-19 Swim project