Sep 15, 2025
1:00 PM2:00 PM
Poster Session
P762
THE EFFECT OF PERSONALISED NUTRITIONAL COUNSELLING ON ENERGY ADEQUACY IN ADULTS WITH LONG COVID
B. G. Jimenez Garcia1,2,3,*, L. Leemans1,2,3, S. Bomans1,2,3, S. Roggeman4, D. Beckwée3, E. De Waele1,2
1Clinical Nutrition, Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel (UZ Brussel), 2Metabolism and Nutrition Research Unit, Vitality Research Group, 3Rehabilitation Research Group, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), 4Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel (UZ Brussel), Brussels, Belgium
Rationale: The WHO recognises the need for multidisciplinary rehabilitation for long COVID (LC). Nutritional counselling could support physical revalidation. Here we evaluate the effect of personalised multimodal therapy (PMT) on the energy adequacy (EA) (=intake/requirement) compared to standard physiotherapy in adults with LC.
Methods: In a single centre randomised controlled pilot trial (NCT05254301), participants received either the PMT (i.e., personalised nutritional counselling and physiotherapy) or standard physiotherapy for 12 weeks. Within the PMT, participants received weekly teleconsultations with a dietitian. Energy intake was calculated from 3-day food diaries using the Belgian Food Composition Database NUBEL. The Resting Energy Expenditure (REE) was measured using indirect calorimetry. The Total Energy Expenditure (TEE) was calculated as REE x Physical Activity Level. The EA was calculated as energy intake/TEE (EATEE) and energy intake/REE (EAREE) at baseline (T0), 6 weeks (T1), 12 weeks (T2) and 18 weeks (T3).Data are shown as mean ± standard deviation. Figure 1 was made with IBM SPSS.
Results: The data of 36 participants (PMT n = 21, standard physiotherapy n = 15) (66.7% female, mean age 43 ± 10 years, mean BMI at T0 of 25.8 ± 4.3 kg/m²) were analysed. Mean EATEE at T0 was 0.68 ± 0.23, mean EAREE at T0 was 1.06 ± 0.33. Figures 1 visualises the evolution of EATEE and EAREE throughout the study.
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Conclusion: Energy adequacy (EATEE and EAREE) was low at baseline, indicating the energy intake did neither cover the REE nor any physical activity or activities or daily life (i.e., TEE). Figure 1 shows a positive, although not significant, trend for the EA in the PMT group compared to the control group, with a continuing increase of the EA after the end of the intervention (T2). Future studies should explore longer durations and larger sample sizes to determine if significant changes in EA can be achieved.
Disclosure of Interest: None declared