Retrospective study of COVID-19 experiences in elite multinational aquatic athletes.

This study assessed the experiences of elite aquatic athletes with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during the first World Championship conducted without social distancing and an isolation "bubble". An online questionnaire was completed by 812 athletes (22.7 ± 5.9 years, 467 females) to provide data on demographics, sports activity, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection rates, symptoms, reinfection, vaccination status, and psychological aspects. The answers revealed that 49.4% of athletes had experienced SARS-CoV-2 infection. The infection rates varied significantly across different aquatic sports, with open water swimmers having the lowest (28%) and water polo players (67%) and artistic swimmers (61%) having the highest infection rates (p < 0.0001). The majority reported mild (51%) or moderate (27%) symptoms, while 16% remained asymptomatic. Reinfection occurred in 13%, and 10% of initial infections led to long COVID, with fatigue (65%) and shortness of breath (48%) being the most common long-term symptoms. Significantly, 92% of athletes received at least two vaccine doses and reported a positive vaccination experience (median score of 8 out of 10 for each shot). Mood changes and subjective performance drops significantly correlated with the overall experience scores (rho: 0.617, p < 0.0001, and rho: 0.466, p < 0.0001, respectively). In conclusion, most athletes experienced a benign disease course despite a relatively high infection rate. This study provides valuable insights into the COVID-19 experiences of elite aquatic athletes. The findings emphasize the importance of vaccination initiatives, monitoring psychological well-being and the need to fortify athletes' resilience in the face of future health challenges.

[Relationship between cardiovascular risk assessment and health behavior in the light of psychosocial factors.] / A cardiovascularis rizikóbecslés és az egészségmagatartás kapcsolata pszichoszociális tényezok tükrében.

INTRODUCTION: Even though preventive measures have been taken to reduce cardiovascular risk, cardiovascular mortality is increasing. Cardiovascular screening can be a population strategy that contributes to the reduction of mortality over the long term when implemented in a systematic, protocol-based, expanded manner. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we examine changes in participants' health behavior between 2012 and 2019 as a follow-up to the Budakalász Epidemiological Study (BEV). METHOD: A cardiovascular health index was developed to enable effective follow-up. This study included subjects with medium and high cardiovascular risks who participated in the BEV complex cardiovascular risk assessment in 2012 (n = 502). Besides the basic data from the BEV baseline study (demographics, healthy lifestyle, risk behavior, diseases treated by medicine), the 2019 follow-up questionnaire included newly added psychological questionnaires (Perceived Stress, WHO Well-being, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Health-Related Social Support, ABCD Risk Questionnaire). RESULTS: All factors of the cardiovascular health index created in our analysis showed an improvement of over 70% between 2012 and 2019. 37.6% of the participants did something for their health, according to their confession, by 30.3%, BEV had a big or very big impact on their lives from the 2012 BEV test in the year after the test, and by 24.7%, BEV had and still has a big or very big impact on their lives. The improving health indices show a significant correlation with psychological factors. Psychological factors showed a positive correlation with well-being (tau_b = 0.344) and a negative correlation with perceived stress (tau_b = -0.225) and hopelessness (tau_b = -0.206). CONCLUSION: The participants in the study showed a significant change in health behavior seven years after the BEV cardiovascular risk assessment. A higher level of mental well-being is associated with improved values. By analyzing the impact of BEV on the health behavior change and the lifestyle, we can conclude that the cardiovascular risk assessment facilitates health behavior change. Orv Hetil. 2023; 164(4): 119-131.

The associations of long-COVID symptoms, clinical characteristics and affective psychological constructs in a non-hospitalized cohort.

Objective: The effects of COVID-19, especially long-COVID, on the psychological health is incompletely understood. We aimed to evaluate the mid-term associations of the long-COVID symptoms and affective factors in a cohort of non-hospitalized patients. Method: A total of 166 patients were enrolled in this study, including 119 sedentary/non-athlete and 47 athlete subjects at the Post-COVID Outpatient Clinic of Semmelweis University. Clinical data regarding acute and long-term symptoms were obtained and detailed laboratory testing was carried out. Demographic data and psychological tests were collected. Results: We found a positive association between the level of depressive symptoms and anxiety and long-COVID symptom count, while life satisfaction and social support correlated negatively with the long-COVID symptom count. Higher haemoglobin levels and lower LDL-cholesterol were also shown to be moderating factors. A regression model showed that symptoms during acute infection, depression, age, and life satisfaction are predictors of the long-COVID symptom count. The presence of pre-existing affective or anxiety problems was also associated with higher reported long-COVID symptom count. Furthermore, we found significant association between pre-existing mental health problems and the investigated psychological constructs. Conclusion: It appears that long COVID-19 is associated with acute symptoms and mental factors. Depression and anxiety have been shown to have a negative effect on symptom perception, and also contribute to a higher number of symptoms in a non-hospitalized sample. Our study suggests bi-directional interconnection between clinical and psychological factors.

ADHD symptomatology of children with congenital heart disease 10 years after cardiac surgery: the role of age at operation.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to investigate the differences in ADHD symptomatology between healthy controls and children who underwent cardiac surgery at different ages. METHODS: Altogether, 133 children (54 patients with congenital heart disease undergoing first cardiac surgery under 3 years of age, 26 operated at the age of 3 or later, and 53 healthy controls) were examined. Patients completed the Youth Self Report (YSR), while their parents completed the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) and the ADHD Rating Scale-IV. RESULTS: Children receiving surgery for the first time under the age of 3 years were more likely diagnosed with cyanotic type malformation and have undergone to a greater number of operations. However, ADHD symptoms of those treated surgically at or above 3 years of age were more severe than that of the control group or those who were treated surgically at a younger age. The control group and those treated surgically below the age of three did not differ across any of the ADHD symptom severity indicators. CONCLUSIONS: The age at the time of cardiac surgery might be associated with later ADHD symptom severity - with lower age at operation associated with better outcomes. Further, adequately powered studies are needed to confirm these exploratory findings and investigate the moderators of this relationship.

Cardiovascular disease risk perception in a Hungarian community sample: psychometric evaluation of the ABCD Risk Perception Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVES: Reliable and valid assessment of subjective risk perception is a crucial part of cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention and rehabilitation. Since the recently developed Attitudes and Beliefs about Cardiovascular Disease (ABCD) Risk Questionnaire complies with these requirements, the aim of the present study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Hungarian version of the measure. DESIGN AND SETTING: Community-based cross-sectional observational study PARTICIPANTS: In sum, 410 (M=49.53 years, SD=8.09) Hungarian adults (inclusion criteria: aged 35 and above, not under treatment with a psychiatric disorder) were included in the present study (female: n=277, 67.6%; college or university-level education: n=247, 60.2%). METHODS: We translated the ABCD Risk Questionnaire into Hungarian and checked its psychometric properties and validity indices. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Internal consistency, explorative and confirmative factorial validity. Associations with sociodemographic and health-related characteristics, as well as with measures of mental health (depressive symptoms, perceived stress and well-being). RESULTS: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a three-factor solution, corresponding to the original subscales of Risk Perception, Perceived Benefits and Healthy Eating Intentions, with a moderate correlation between the latent constructs. The respondents' level of knowledge on CVD risk factors was largely independent of their subjective risk perception. The results also provided evidence on the weak-to-medium associations between mental health indices and CVD-related perceptions. Based on the results, a shortened scale version was also suggested. CONCLUSION: This study confirms the factorial structure, internal consistency and validity of the Hungarian version of the ABCD Risk Questionnaire in a non-English-speaking community sample. The ABCD Risk Perception Questionnaire is a parsimonious and psychometrically adequate measure to assess CVD-related attitudes and knowledge in the general population. Further research is needed in socioeconomically more diverse and in clinical samples, as well as in longitudinal intervention studies.

[Correlation of social support and healthy lifestyle]. / A társas támogatás és az egészséges életmód összefüggései.

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death accounting for 4 million deaths per year in Europe. Psychosocial factors explain at least 25-40% of the disease's prevalence beyond the well-known lifestyle factors. Isolation in adulthood is one of the main sources of chronic stress that raises the incidence of the disease. The low level of social support and social isolation are increasing the risk of depression and high blood pressure hence the incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Aim: Our aim was to observe the correlation between social isolation and health behaviour. Furthermore, we have adapted the earlier validated Multidimensional Social Support Scale to the domain of health. Method: The data from 507 persons were collected online in 2018. Multidimensional Social Support Scale adapted to health, self-rated health, subjective means, short version of Beck Depression, shortened version of WHO Wellbeing, and Perceived Stress Scales were recorded. Results: Factor analysis verified the scale construction of the original 3-subscale structure (Cronbach alpha values = 0.945, 0.950 and 0.905). According to the regression models, social support received from friends we have observed to have moderately positive correlation with intensive exercises (B = 0.205, beta = 0.096, p = 0.093). Logistic regression model revealed that health-connected social support does not correlate with smoking, only education variable was related with it strongly, statistically significantly (B = -1.284, OR = 0.277, p<0.001). Conclusion: Multidimensional Social Support Scale has satisfactory stability and consistency to measure health-related social support. Social support showed correlation with the measures of mental health (depression, stress-level, wellbeing), and moderate association with intense exercises. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(4): 129-138.