Deconditioning as main mechanism of impaired exercise response in COVID-19 survivors

• Published in: The European respiratory journal Vol. 58; no. 2; p. 2100870
• Main Authors: Rinaldo, Rocco Francesco, Mondoni, Michele, Parazzini, Elena Maria, Pitari, Federica, Brambilla, Elena, Luraschi, Simone, Balbi, Maurizio, Sferrazza Papa, Giuseppe Francesco, Sotgiu, Giovanni, Guazzi, Marco, Di Marco, Fabiano, Centanni, Stefano
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England European Respiratory Society 06.05.2021
• Subjects: Agora
• ISSN: 0903-1936; 1399-3003; 1399-3003
• DOI: 10.1183/13993003.00870-2021

SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) and the related coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) hit Europe in February 2020 [1], raising issues on acute phase management and, later on, the management of its long-term sequelae. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET), which is the gold standard for the evaluation of exercise capacity, is included in the list of examinations of the European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society task force for the follow-up of COVID-19 patients [2]. However, it is not performed in every clinical centre, as it requires specific technical skills. The objective of this observational, prospective study was to evaluate the sequelae of COVID-19 by assessing exercise performance during incremental CPET. CPET reveals only a mild impairment of exercise capacity, with preserved ventilatory and gas exchange response at 3 months follow-up in COVID-19 survivors, due to deconditioning https://bit.ly/3sI8e0Y