Physiological Underpinnings of Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS CoV-2 ("Long COVID") and Impact of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation on Quality-of-Life and Functional Capacity
University of Colorado, Denver
Summary
The primary objectives of this study are to determine whether exercise training is an effective strategy for treatment of Long COVID and characterize the cardiorespiratory and autonomic physiology in these patients to precisely characterize mechanisms contributing to this syndrome.
Description
Abnormalities observed among Long COVID patients are consistent with cardiac deconditioning. The Long COVID syndrome has been attributed to dysautonomia and/or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) based largely on anecdotal experience and observations of positional tachycardia among affected individuals. However, it has been emphasized that data are clearly lacking to implicate dysautonomia alone as the cause of Long COVID. Alternatively, cardiac deconditioning leads to a constellation of symptoms, including exercise intolerance, brain fog/cognitive impairments, tachycardia and ort…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: * Adults ≥18 years with documented history of COVID-19 infection and symptoms consistent with Long COVID lasting \>12 weeks after diagnosis. Exclusion Criteria: * History of cardiovascular/pulmonary disease prior to infection * COVID-related myocardial injury such as evidence of myocarditis * Deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism following COVID-19 infection * Exercise intolerance resulting from conditions that are not related to cardiorespiratory or autonomic factors (e.g. osteoarthritis or other musculoskeletal diseases); * Dependency of supplemental oxygen following…
Interventions
- BehavioralExercise
exercise protocol
Location
- University of Colorado HospitalAurora, Colorado