The Effects of Exercise Training on Recovery of Biochemical and Hematological Outcomes in Patients Surviving COVID-19: A Randomized Controlled Assessor-Blinded Trial
Abstract
Background No previous research has investigated the direct effects of exercise interventions on COVID-19 outcomes. The aim is to investigate the effect of 8 weeks of home-based moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT), resistance training (RT), and combined aerobic and resistance training (CET) on biochemical and hematologic markers associated with COVID-19 symptoms and severity in COVID-19 survivors. Methods A total of 547 male and female COVID-19 survivors were screened, and 296 (aged 20–93 years) were randomly assigned in a 1:1:1:1 ratio to one of four groups: MICT ( n = 74), RT ( n = 74), CET ( n = 74), or non-exercise (NON-EX, n = 74). Blood samples were taken at baseline, at week 4, and week 8 after training. Results After the intervention, compared with the NON-EX group, all 3 MICT, RT, and CET interventions caused significant improvements in the levels of creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), C-reactive protein (CRP), troponin-I, d-dimer, creatinine, urea, potassium (K), sodium (Na), white blood cell (WBC), neutrophils, lymphocytes, red blood cells (RBC), platelets, hemoglobin, and hematocrit concentrations ( P < 0.05). CET was effectively superior to MICT and RT in the improvements in the biochemical and hematological variables studied ( P < 0.05). Conclusions Overall, the present study demonstrates that long-term MICT plus RT interventions have a synergistic effect in accelerating and enhancing the recovery in patients surviving COVID-19. Trial…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 74 participants or records.
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