Physical Activity versus Selected Health Behaviors, Subjective Physical and Psychological Health and Multimorbidity in a Large Cohort of Polish Seniors during the COVID-19 Pandemic (Results of the National Test for Poles' Health ).

National Test for Poles' Health is an online study conducted on a large group of Polish Internet users. For the purpose of this study, 64,732 subjects (48.8% female) over 65 years old were included. Subjects provided answers on the level of physical activity (PA) they engage in, prevalence of non-communicable diseases (obesity, hypertension, diabetes, heart diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), depression, cancer) and subjective physical and psychological health. Additionally, their Body Mass Index (BMI) and prevalence of multimorbidity was assessed. We found that older people who engage in at least 2 h of physical activity/week had significantly lower prevalence of hypertension, obesity and heart diseases than those who engaged in 1-1.5 h/week or less than 1 h/week. Multimorbidity was present in 33.2% of subjects from the most active group and 52.6% of the least active ones. Subjective physical and psychological health was rated as "very good" by 26.6% and 41.2%, respectively, by subjects from the most active group. Only 9.1% of the least active subjects rated their physical health as "very good" and only 27.4% rated their psychological health as such. Regular physical activity may be a helpful tool in combating the reduced well-being of older people affected by the isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, over 65% of respondents claimed to engage in less than 1 h of PA a week or less.

Work-Life Balance and Mental and Physical Health among Warsaw Specialists, Managers and Entrepreneurs.

Many studies have shown that low work-life balance (WLB) can be harmful to health. Poland is a country with one of the lowest indicators on the WLB scale among European countries but there are only a few studies about the connection between WLB and health. The present analysis aimed to answer the questions of whether the lower WLB among Warsaw's middle class correlates with poorer mental and physical health, and what life orientations and values typical of the middle class are related to work-life balance. Two surveys were conducted in the years 2003 and 2013 on the quota samples of 500 members of the Warsaw middle class: specialists, managers, and entrepreneurs. The current analysis has indicated the connection between a lower level of WLB and worse mental and physical health. Some middle-class life orientations are connected with a high WLB. The relationship between WLB and health was stronger in 2013 than in 2003. It can be considered a result of mentality and lifestyle changes and generational renewal. The study should be repeated in 2023 after the COVID-19 pandemic as the work situation of the middle class may have changed.

Cardiac involvement in consecutive elite athletes recovered from Covid-19: A magnetic resonance study.

Magnetic resonance (MR) studies suggested cardiac involvement post-Covid-19 in a significant subset of affected individuals, including athletes. This brings serious clinical concerns regarding the potential need for in-depth cardiac screening in athletes after Covid-19 before return to play. The aim of this study was to gain further insight into the relation between Covid-19 and cardiac involvement in professional athletes. This was a retrospective cohort study, in which 26 consecutive elite athletes (national team, Olympians, top national league players; median age 24 years, interquartile range [IQR] 21-27, 81% female) were included. At 1.5 T including balanced steady-state free precession cine imaging, T1 and T2-mapping using Myomaps software (Siemens), dark-blood T2-weighted images with fat suppression, and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) with phase-sensitive inversion recovery sequence were used. The athletes had mainly asymptomatic or mild course of the disease (77%). They were scanned after a median of 32 days (IQR 22-62 days) from the diagnosis. MR data were reviewed by three independent observers, each with >10 years cardiac MR experience. Native T1, T2, extracellular volume, and T2 signal intensity ratio were calculated. Diagnosis of acute myocarditis was based on modified Lake Louise criteria. Statistical analyses used were Pearson correlation and Bland-Altman repeatability analysis. At the time of MR the athletes had no pathologic electrocardiogram abnormalities or elevated troponin levels. MR did not reveal any case of acute myocarditis. Cardiac abnormalities were found in five (19%) athletes, including four athletes presenting borderline signs of isolated myocardial edema and one athlete showing nonischemic LGE with pleural and pericardial effusion. Another athlete had signs of persistent lung congestion without cardiac involvement. We have shown that in a small group of elite athletes with mainly asymptomatic to mild Covid-19, lack of electrocardiographic changes, and normal troponin concentration 1-2 months after the diagnosis, there were no signs of acute myocarditis, but 19% of athletes had some abnormalities as assessed by cardiac MR. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4 TECHNICAL EFFICACY STAGE: 3.