Objective: High prevalences of muscle weakness and impaired physical performance in hospitalized patients recovering from COVID-19-associated pneumonia have been reported. Our objective was to determine whether the level of exercise capacity after discharge would affect long-term functional outcomes in these patients.

Methods: From three to five weeks after discharge from acute care hospitals (T0), patients underwent a six-minute walk test (6MWT) and were divided into two groups according to the distance walked in percentage of predicted values: <75% group and ≥75% group. At T0 and three months later (T1), patients completed the Short Physical Performance Battery and the Euro Quality of Life Visual Analogue Scale, and pulmonary function and respiratory muscle function were assessed. In addition, a repeat 6MWT was also performed at T1.

Results: At T0, 6MWD values and Short Physical Performance Battery scores were lower in the <75% group than in the ≥75% group. No differences were found in the Euro Quality of Life Visual Analogue Scale scores, pulmonary function variables, respiratory muscle function variables, length of hospital stay, or previous treatment. At T1, both groups improved their exercise capacity, but only the subjects in the <75% group showed significant improvements in dyspnea and lower extremity function. Exercise capacity and functional status values returned to predicted values in all of the patients in both groups.

Conclusions: Four weeks after discharge, COVID-19 survivors with exercise limitation showed no significant differences in physiological or clinical characteristics or in perceived health status when compared with patients without exercise limitation. Three months later, those patients recovered their exercise capacity.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8332654PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.36416/1806-3756/e20210076DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

exercise capacity
8
patients recovering
8
recovering covid-19-associated
8
covid-19-associated pneumonia
8
time course
4
course exercise
4
capacity patients
4
pneumonia objective
4
objective high
4
high prevalences
4

Similar Publications

Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to explore how non-drug treatments affect sarcopenic obesity (SO) through a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs).
  • Results indicated that exercise and nutrition can improve various physical health metrics, such as body fat percentage (PBF) and grip strength, but individual interventions showed limited effectiveness.
  • The combination of exercise and nutritional interventions proved to be the most effective approach for improving outcomes related to SO, highlighting the potential role of physical therapy as well.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Electrical stimulation of injured nerves promotes recovery in animals and humans.

J Physiol

December 2024

Division of Reconstructive and Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The frequent poor functional outcomes after delayed surgical repair of injured human peripheral nerves results in progressive downregulation of growth-associated genes in parallel with reduced neuronal regenerative capacity under each of the experimental conditions of chronic axotomy of neurones that remain without target contact, chronic distal nerve stump denervation, and chronic muscle denervation. Brief (1 h) low-frequency (20 Hz) electrical stimulation (ES) accelerates the outgrowth of regenerating axons across the surgical site of microsurgical repair of a transected nerve. Exercise programmes also promote nerve regeneration with the combination of ES and exercise being the most effective.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Beta-aminoisobutyric acid improves bovine oocyte maturation and subsequent embryonic development by promoting lipid catabolism.

Theriogenology

December 2024

State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-bioresources, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Animal Breeding, Disease Control and Prevention, Guangxi University, Nanning, 530005, China. Electronic address:

Energy metabolism homeostasis is essential for oocyte maturation and acquisition of developmental capacity. However, bovine oocyte in vitro maturation (IVM) is highly susceptible to metabolic stress and lipid accumulation. β-Aminoisobutyric acid (BAIBA), a metabolite produced in response to skeletal muscle exercise, has been reported to be involved in lipid and glucose metabolism, as well as inflammation and oxidative stress.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In patients with type II diabetes, the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy (DC) is associated with a high risk of mortality. Left ventricular hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction, and exercise intolerance are the first signs of DC. The underlying mechanisms are not fully elucidated, and there is an urgent need for specific biomarkers and molecular targets for early diagnosis and treatment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Clinical Implications of Functional Imaging in the Assessment of Bronchiectasis-Associated Sarcopenia.

Arch Bronconeumol

December 2024

Pulmonology Department-Muscle Wasting and Cachexia in Chronic Respiratory Diseases and Lung Cancer Research Group, IMIM-Hospital del Mar, Parc de Salut Mar, Department of Medicine and Life Sciences (MELIS), Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB), Dr. Aiguader, 88, E-08003 Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación en Red de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Monforte de Lemos, 5, E-28029 Madrid, Spain. Electronic address:

Introduction: Bronchiectasis is a complex lung disease with poorly studied systemic manifestations. Patients with bronchiectasis-associated sarcopenia exhibit a specific differential profile of functional muscle phenotype (vastus lateralis, VL), which may be analyzed using imaging (ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging, MRI).

Methods: Ultrasound and MRI were used to explore functional imaging parameters in quadriceps of 20 patients with stable bronchiectasis and 10 healthy controls.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!