Virtual Reality Therapy Influence on Heart Rate Variability of Inpatients With COVID-19

The end of 2019 saw the emergence of a new human coronavirus (COVID-19) spread rapidly around the world and has a high degree of lethality. In more severe cases, patients remain in hospital inpatient units, under the care of the health team. To serve this population, it is important to use and develop potential tools to meet the demands of physical activity and improve cardiorespiratory fitness. In this sense, exposure therapies of virtual reality are promising and, although limited for this purpose, have been shown to be an adequate and equivalent alternative to traditional exercise programs. Fifty patients with confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 will be evaluated in an inpatient unit at Hospital São Paulo, at Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (HSP - EPM/UNIFESP). After completing all the questionnaires and tests of the initial evaluation (Medical Research Council Scale, Visual Analogue Scale, BORG Scale, Brunel's Mood Scale, Satisfaction Scale and Heart Rate Variability - HRV), the individuals will be divided into two groups being Group A: Subjects with COVID-19 who will start the first day of the protocol with Virtual Reality tasks in the morning and then in the second period, in the afternoon, will perform the conventional exercises (n = 25); And Group B: Subjects with COVID-19 who will start the first day with conventional exercises in the morning and in the second period, in the afternoon, will perform activity with virtual reality (n = 25). After the application of therapies, final evaluations will be carried out. The rehabilitation protocol will be applied during all days of hospitalization. For the protocol, the Heart Rate Variability indices will be evaluated in three moments: (1) rest before the task, (2) during the intervention, (3) recovering from the intervention. The performance data during the activity in Virtual reality will also be evaluated. The results of this study will assist in assessing the response to rehabilitation