AUTHOR=Garbsch René , Kotewitsch Mona , Schäfer Hendrik , Teschler Marc , Mooren Frank C. , Schmitz Boris 

TITLE=Use of speleotherapy in patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2025.1566235

DOI=10.3389/fmed.2025.1566235

ISSN=2296-858X

ABSTRACT=BackgroundThe post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) is characterized by persistent or newly developed symptoms and performance deficits lasting at least 3 months following SARS-CoV-2 infection, with dyspnea as a common symptom. Speleotherapy, a form of climatotherapy utilizing the microclimatic conditions of natural or artificial caves, has been proposed as a supportive treatment for chronic airway diseases, potentially improving lung function and exercise tolerance.MethodsThis study investigated the short-term effects of speleotherapy on lung diffusion capacity (DLCO) in PCS patients through a prospective interrupted time-series analysis. Forty-six patients (51.9 ± 9.3 years; 43% female) referred for rehabilitation were included, with a history of COVID-19 infection and persistent deficits lasting over 3 months. Patients underwent spirometric assessments of DLCO repeatedly on days without speleotherapy intervention and on days with intervention, alongside subjective symptom evaluations using the Nijmegen questionnaire.ResultsPCS patients performed a median of four out of seven speleotherapy sessions during rehabilitation, resulting in a total of 388 measurements. Analysis revealed no significant changes in DLCO or related parameters (transfer coefficient (KCO), inspiratory volume (IV), total lung capacity (TLC), Residual volume (RV)) during rehabilitation and between speleotherapy and control days (p ≥ 0.544). Subgroup analysis of patients with DLCO below 80% of predicted reference and symptom severity assessments also revealed no therapeutic benefits. Speleotherapy frequency showed no dose-dependent effects on pulmonary outcomes (p = 0.171). Findings from a small control group confirmed these results (p ≥ 0.997).ConclusionSpeleotherapy did not improve DLCO or alleviate symptoms in PCS patients within this study cohort. Further research is needed to investigate whether speleotherapy can alleviate pulmonary dysfunction in different PCS populations.