UMEM Educational Pearls

Title: Exercise and Covid-19

Keywords: Myocarditis, Covid-19 (PubMed Search)

Posted: 1/23/2021 by Brian Corwell, MD (Updated: 4/20/2024)
Click here to contact Brian Corwell, MD

Exercise and Covid-19

The majority of COVID-19 cases fall into the mild-to-moderate category, with symptoms lasting less than 6 weeks on average.

The disease presents a challenge for clinicians seeking to offer counsel for patients wishing to return to exercise.

A recent cohort study in Germany looked at 100 patients (avg. age 49, 53% male) who had recovered from Covid-19 infection.

Most had been healthy, with no pre-existing medical conditions, before becoming infected.

The group had cardiac MRI (CMR) performed.

Average time interval between Covid-19 diagnosis and CMR was 71 days.

Cardiac involvement was seen in 78% of patients and ongoing myocardial inflammation in 60%.

Evidence based return to activity guidelines being developed are more conservative than in the past with other viral infections

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11420-020-09777-1/tables/1

References

1) Puntmann VO, Carerj ML, Wieters I, et al. Outcomes of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Patients Recently Recovered From Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). JAMA Cardiol. 2020;5(11):1265–1273. doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2020.3557

2) Metzl, J.D., McElheny, K., Robinson, J.N. et al. Considerations for Return to Exercise Following Mild-to-Moderate COVID-19 in the Recreational Athlete. HSS Jrnl 16, 102–107 (2020).