Starting an Energy System First Aid Approach for Long COVID (Recorded Webinar)

Course overview

We are experiencing the novel coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) as a series of successive waves. The first wave is the acute illness associated with suspected or confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Subsequent waves will involve people with persistent signs and symptoms, as well as delayed recoveries. These latent waves may be our generation's polio moment, and they require us to further develop our knowledge and skills to assist these newly disabled people. Long COVID is the patient-initiated and -preferred term for the prolonged signs, symptoms, and disability after suspected or confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Consistent with known fatigue syndromes of commonly postviral etiologies, one important characteristic of long COVID is postexertional symptom exacerbation (PESE). In turn, PESE is associated with a whole host of neuroimmune and metabolic changes that may underlie the observed signs, symptoms, and disability of long COVID. This webinar will describe the identification of long COVID and clues about its physiology from existing literature describing PESE. It will then introduce the concept of energy system first aid to describe how activity pacing strategies may be designed and implemented to reduce loading on dysfunctional energy systems. Specific ideas will be provided about how to inform pacing strategies with vital sign data from wearable devices.