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Importance of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis

  • Purwo Sri Rejeki EMAIL logo , Bendix Samarta Witarto , Andro Pramana Witarto , Salsabila Nabilah Rifdah , Ifan Ali Wafa , Dita Mega Utami , Nabilah Izzatunnisa , Citrawati Dyah Kencono Wungu , Siti Khaerunnisa , Sakina and Nur Ezza Fazleen Mohd Fathil
Published/Copyright: March 24, 2023
Journal of Basic and Clinical Physiology and Pharmacology
From the journal Journal of Basic and Clinical Physiology and Pharmacology Volume 34 Issue 3

Abstract

Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) has been shown to have a favorable effect on many diseases as a complementary therapy and is a critical component of healthy living. During the pandemic era, physical activity has been promoted for resistance against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, there is scarce evidence on whether MVPA could reduce the infectivity and susceptibility to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The objective of this meta-analysis was to determine the effect of MVPA on morbidity, mortality, and duration of hospitalization in COVID-19 patients. We performed a comprehensive search of five online databases for eligible studies up to September 9, 2021. Meta-analyses were conducted to determine the association between MVPA and COVID-19-related morbidity, hospitalization, and mortality. The odds ratio (OR) was applied as the summary statistic for the primary outcomes. Secondary analyses were conducted to evaluate the difference in the metabolic equivalent of tasks (METs) between the outcome and non-outcome groups with the mean difference as the pooled effect. This meta-analysis included eight observational studies. We found that MVPA significantly reduced the odds of contracting SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR=0.88; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.85–0.92), hospitalization (OR=0.56; 95% CI=0.35–0.92), and mortality (OR=0.42; 95% CI=0.21–0.81) due to COVID-19 compared to no physical activity. METs≥500 min/week were linked to decreased morbidity and mortality of COVID-19 (OR=0.94 [95% CI=0.90–0.98]; OR=0.56 [95% CI=0.38–0.83]). COVID-19 patients with MVPA demonstrated a lower risk of COVID-19-related morbidity, hospitalization, and mortality compared to those who were less active, highlighting the importance of an active lifestyle despite the pandemic situation where such activities are limited.

Keywords: active lifestyle; COVID-19; hospitalization; morbidity; mortality
Corresponding author: Purwo Sri Rejeki Department of Medical Physiology and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, East Java 60131, Indonesia, Phone: +62 8214 1559 388, E-mail:

Funding source: Universitas Airlangga

Award Identifier / Grant number: 830/UN3.15/PT/2021

Acknowledgments

We would like to express our gratitude to the Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Airlangga for providing good facilities for making the project a success.

  1. Research funding: This research was supported by grants from the LPPM mandate of Airlangga University (830/UN3.15/PT/2021).

  2. Author contributions: PSR, BSW, APW, DMU, and NI structured the study, participated in its design, conducted a literature search, data extraction, analysis, and interpretation, and was involved in the writing of the manuscript; SK, SH and NEFMF participated in data extraction and quality assessment; SNR and IAW structured the research and participated in its design; CDKW conducts a technical assessment. All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.

  3. Conflicts of interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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Supplementary Material

This article contains supplementary material (https://doi.org/10.1515/jbcpp-2023-0040).

Received: 2023-02-08
Accepted: 2023-03-02
Published Online: 2023-03-24

© 2023 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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https://doi.org/10.1515/jbcpp-2023-0040
Keywords for this article
active lifestyle; COVID-19; hospitalization; morbidity; mortality

Articles in the same Issue

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  2. Editorial
  3. Investigating periprostatic adipose tissue as a driving force of prostate cancer progression: a new source of information for the advancement of targeted therapy in metastatic prostate cancer
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  7. Anti-ageing effects of FDA-approved medicines: a focused review
  8. Diagnosis and management of uterine fibroids: current trends and future strategies
  9. Importance of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis
  10. Original Articles
  11. Healthcare workers’ knowledge of evidence-based guidelines for prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia in Hodeida, Yemen
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