Dietary
creatine has been recently put forward as a possible intervention strategy to reduce post-COVID-19
fatigue syndrome yet no clinical study so far evaluated its efficacy and safety for this perplexing condition. In this parallel-group, randomized placebo-controlled double-blind trial, we analyzed the effects of 6-month
creatine supplementation (4 g of
creatine monohydrate per day) on various patient- and clinician-reported outcomes, and tissue
creatine levels in 12 patients with post-COVID-19
fatigue syndrome.
Creatine intake induced a significant increase in tissue
creatine levels in vastus medialis muscle and right parietal white matter compared to the baseline values at both 3-month and 6-month follow-ups (p < .05). Two-way analysis of variance with repeated measures revealed a significant difference (treatment vs. time interaction) between interventions in tissue
creatine levels (p < .05), with the
creatine group was superior to placebo to augment
creatine levels at vastus medialis muscle, left frontal white matter, and right parietal white matter.
Creatine supplementation induced a significant reduction in general
fatigue after 3 months of intake compared to baseline values (p = .04), and significantly improved scores for several post-COVID-19
fatigue syndrome-related symptoms (e.g.,
ageusia, breathing difficulties, body
aches,
headache, and difficulties concentrating) at 6-month follow-up (p < .05). Taking
creatine for 6 months appears to improve tissue bioenergetics and attenuate clinical features of post-COVID-19
fatigue syndrome; additional studies are warranted to confirm our findings in various post-COVID-19 cohorts.