ABSTRACT
Assessment of health-related physical fitness (PF) and body composition (BC) may yield relevant information on body function in patients who have been affected by Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Aim of our study was to evaluate the short-term effects of COVID-19 on physical fitness in a real-life cohort of outpatients including hospitalized and home-treated patients. Sixty-four patients (M=36;mean age 56+/-13.5 yrs) previously affected by COVID-19 (25 hospitalized vs. 39 hometreated) in the 3-6 months preceding the study measurements were enrolled. PF was evaluated with the following tests: handgrip strength (HGS), gait speed (GAIT), sit-to-stand (STS), timed up and go (TUG) and Short physical performance battery (SPPB). Phase angle (PhA) was measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) as a proxy marker of fat-free mass composition in terms of body cell mass and cell integrity. Poor PF performance was observed in 38% of subjects for HGS, 55% for GAIT, 30% for STS, 38% for TUG, and 70% for SPPB, while low values of PA were observed in 42% of the study sample in comparison with international cut-offs. The presence of 3-5 impaired values out of five was observed in 38% of patients. All PF tests (and even more the number of abnormal PF tests) consistently correlated with PhA. No differences were reported between hospitalized and home-treated patients. In the short-run, COVID-19 causes a worsening of physical fitness regardless of baseline disease severity. More research is required to systematically measure the extent of functional impairments in COVID-19 and to address whether and how rehabilitation can promote post-infection recovery.