Predictors of submaximal exercise test attainment in adults reporting long COVID symptoms
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2022Author:
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Romero-Ortuno, R.; Jennings, G.; Xue, F.; Duggan, E.; Gormley, J.; Monaghan, A.; Predictors of Submaximal Exercise Test Attainment in Adults Reporting Long COVID Symptoms, Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2022, 11, 2376Download Item:
Abstract:
Adults with long COVID often report intolerance to exercise. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) has been used in many settings to measure exercise ability but has been conducted in a
few long COVID cohorts. We conducted CPET in a sample of adults reporting long COVID symptoms
using a submaximal cycle ergometer protocol. We studied pre-exercise predictors of achieving 85% of the age-predicted maximum heart rate (85%HRmax) using logistic regression. Eighty participants
were included (mean age 46 years, range 25–78, 71% women). Forty participants (50%) did not reach
85%HRmax. On average, non-achievers reached 84% of their predicted 85%HRmax. No adverse
events occurred. Participants who did not achieve 85%HRmax were older (p < 0.001), had more
recent COVID-19 illness (p = 0.012) with higher frequency of hospitalization (p = 0.025), and had
been more affected by dizziness (p = 0.041) and joint pain (p = 0.028). In the logistic regression model including age, body mass index, time since COVID-19, COVID-19-related hospitalization, dizziness, joint pain, pre-existing cardiopulmonary disease, and use of beta blockers, independent predictors of achieving 85%HRmax were younger age (p = 0.001) and longer time since COVID-19 (p = 0.008). Our cross-sectional findings suggest that exercise tolerance in adults with long COVID has potential to improve over time. Longitudinal research should assess the extent to which this may occur and its mechanisms. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT05027724 (TROPIC Study).
Sponsor
Grant Number
Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)
20/COV/8493 and 18/FRL/6188
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http://people.tcd.ie/romeroorDescription:
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Author: Romero-Ortuno, Roman
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Journal of Clinical Medicine (Basel);Availability:
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Observational study, Heart rate, Cardiopulmonary exercise test, Long COVID, Exercise toleranceSubject (TCD):
Ageing , Immunology, Inflammation & Infection , NeuroscienceDOI:
https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11092376Metadata
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