The Effects of Telerehabilitation Based Exercise Program in Patients With Systemic Sclerosis

Systemic Sclerosis (Ssc) is a rare, systemic autoimmune disease characterized by skin fibrosis and vasculopathy. In addition to the skin, it is a heterogeneous disease that affects multiple organs, including the musculoskeletal, cardiac, pulmonary, and gastrointestinal systems. Patients may experience many symptoms such as pain, fatigue, dyspnea, impaired hand function, dry mouth, and difficulty sleeping. As a result of these symptoms, these patients may experience a decrease in activities of daily living, physical activity level and quality of life, while psychological problems such as anxiety and depression may increase. In addition to medical treatment, rehabilitation programs for the patient are an important part of treatment to eliminate or reduce these symptoms and their consequences. Many problems such as time and resource constraints, transportation problems prevent access and compliance with the rehabilitation program. Also; For the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic that emerged in Wuhan, China in 2019, many countries have implemented many practices such as social distance, mandatory quarantine and transportation restrictions in order to better control the spread of the virus. Many people with SSc are at risk of serious complications from COVID-19 if infected due to lung involvement (\>40% have interstitial lung disease) and widespread use of immunosuppressant drugs. Most countries have recommended that people with medical conditions such as SSc undergo strict isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, patients' access to the rehabilitation program became more difficult in this process. In addition, social isolation due to the COVID-19 outbreak may increase physical inactivity and cause complications that may develop accordingly. When the literature was examined, no studies were found showing the effect of telerehabilitation program on anxiety depression, physical activity, sleep, fatigue and quality of life in patients with SSc.