Radial Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy to Support Breathing in Case of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Case Report

Many patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) suffer from shortness of breath and severe chest pain. Here we report successful therapy of a patient with diagnosis of COVID-19, severe chest pain and significant shortness of breath, using radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy (rESWT). The latter started seven days after beginning of symptoms and drug therapy without success, and involved daily application of 15.000 to 20.000 radial extracorporeal shock waves over the intercostal muscles as well as the paravertebral muscles of the thoracic and lumbar spine, diaphragm and flanks. Immediately after the first rESWT session the patient experienced significant pain relief and improvement of breathing. Four days later the pain had completely subsided and breathing was largely normalized. This type of noninvasive, non-pharmacologic treatment could help many COVID-19 patients or patients who still suffer from breathing problems weeks after having been infected with SARS-CoV-2, giving them back quality of life.