Being physically active leads to better recovery prognosis for people diagnosed with COVID-19: A cross-sectional study

• Autor(a) principal: Gomide, Euripedes Barsanulfo Gonçalves
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Outros Autores: Mazzonetto, Lisa Fernanda, Cordeiro, Jéssica Fernanda Corrêa, Cordeiro, Daniella Corrêa, Oliveira, Alcivandro de Sousa, Fioco, Evandro Marianetti, Venturini, Ana Claudia Rossini, Abdalla, Pedro Pugliesi, Da Silva, Leonardo Santos Lopes, Tasinafo Júnior, Márcio Fernando, De Andrade, Denise, Bohn, Lucimere, Machado, D. R. L., Dos Santos, André Pereira
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/19023
• topic: Pandemic; SARS-CoV-2; Physical activity; General health; Lifestyle; Morbidity; Mortality

The regular practice of physical activity helps in the prevention and control of several non-communicable diseases. However, evidence on the role of physical activity in mitigating worsening clinical outcomes in people with COVID-19 is still unclear. The aim of this study was to verify whether different levels of physical activity provide protection for clinical outcomes caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 509 adults (43.8 +/- 15.71 years; 61.1% female) with a positive diagnosis of COVID-19 residing in Ribeirao Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Participants were interviewed by telephone to determine the severity of the infection and the physical activity performed. Binary logistic regression was used to indicate the odds ratio (OR) of active people reporting less harmful clinical outcomes from COVID-19. Active people had a lower chance of hospitalization, fewer hospitalization days, less respiratory difficulty and needed less oxygen support. The results suggest that active people, compared to sedentary people, have a lower frequency of hospitalization, length of stay, breathing difficulty and need for oxygen support. These results corroborate the importance of public policies to promote the practice of physical activity, in order to mitigate the severity of the clinical outcomes of COVID-19.