Functional capacity, muscle function, lung function and quality of life in men with post-COVID-19 syndrome

Abstract

Introduction: There are currently a large number of patients with post-COVID syndrome (PCS) who must be monitored so that a very large number of complications can be identified and treated. Respiratory impairment is the most common in these patients, however, other impairments can be observed, causing important cadiopulmonary, musculoskeletal and psychological disorders. As a consequence, there is muscle weakness, dyspnea, depression and/or anxiety, significant weight loss and cardiovascular sequelae. In fact, musculoskeletal and cardiopulmonary limitations are responsible for several post-COVID complaints, negatively impacting functional capacity in PCS. Post-COVID-19 functional impairment can impair the ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL) and functionality, alter professional performance and hinder social interaction. In recent decades, the Glittre-ADL test (TGlittre) has been proposed to evaluate essential ADL in patients with numerous respiratory and non-respiratory diseases. Many COVID-19 survivors, especially those who have been hospitalized, have suffered numerous complications that limit their ADL, although the changes that persist 3 years after infection are not yet known. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term impact of COVID-19 using TGlittre 3 years after acute infection in men who required hospitalization, without the need for intensive therapy and explore whether performance on TGlittre is associated with impairments in lung function, muscle strength, physical function and quality of life (QoL). Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with 42 men with long COVID who underwent TGlittre. They underwent pulmonary function tests and measurements of handgrip strength and quadriceps strength (FS). In addition, they also completed the Saint George Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM). Results: The average age was 52 ± 10.6 years, while the average time after COVID-19 diagnosis was 37 ± 3.5 months. The median TGlittre time was 3.3 (3.1-4.1) min, which was 10% longer than the time expected to be completed by normal subjects. TGlittre time significantly correlated with QS (rs = -0.397, p = 0.009), lung diffusion (rs = -0.364, p = 0.017), FIM (rs = -0.364, p = 0.017) and "activity" domain score of the SGRQ (rs = 0.327, p = 0.034). Conclusion: As conclusions, this work shows that functional capacity for exertion, measured by TGlittre time, is normal in the majority of men with long-term COVID-19, 3 years after hospitalization.The absense of rehabilitation time or whether there was outpatient treatment after discharge would be a limitation of the study, which could interfere with the results.However, this improvement in functional capacity does not seem to reflect on muscle strength and QoL, requiring continuous monitoring even after 3 years.