The effectiveness of cognitive-motor training on reconstructing cognitive health components in older male adults, recovered from the COVID-19

Objective The incidence of COVID-19 disease in the elderly can accelerate normal degenerative process of cognitive functions. Interactive cognitive-motor training (CMT) is an intervention that integrates cognitive and motor tasks to promote individuals’ physical and psychological health. The present study aimed to examine the effect of CMT on reconstructing cognitive health components in older men, who have recently recovered from COVID-19. Materials and methods This study is a quasi-experimental repeated measure (without control group). Participants were 42 elderly men (65–80 years) who recovered from the COVID-19 disease that individually participated in a 4-week CMT program twice a week. The cognitive health components of the participants were assessed by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-2) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) at 3 stages before the beginning of the intervention (baseline assessment); 2 weeks after the intervention (short-term follow-up); and 3 months after the intervention (long-term follow-up). Results The results showed that the scores of depression, anxiety, physical symptoms, and social performance components and the overall GHQ score improved significantly in short-term follow-up ( P