Recovery from COVID-19 in athletes and impact on sporting participation

J H Hull; Z Williams; M Wootten; C Ranson; N Heron

doi:10.1016/j.jsams.2023.07.011

Recovery from COVID-19 in athletes and impact on sporting participation

J Sci Med Sport. 2023 Oct;26(10):528-529. doi: 10.1016/j.jsams.2023.07.011. Epub 2023 Aug 17.

Authors

J H Hull¹, Z Williams², M Wootten³, C Ranson³, N Heron⁴

Affiliations

¹ English Institute of Sport, UK; Department of Respiratory Medicine, Royal Brompton Hospital, UK; Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health (ISEH), Division of Surgery and Interventional Science, University College London, UK. Electronic address: j.hull@rbht.nhs.uk.
² Department of Respiratory Medicine, Royal Brompton Hospital, UK.
³ English Institute of Sport, UK.
⁴ Centre for Public Health, Queen's University Belfast, UK; School of Medicine, Keele University, UK.

PMID: 37598098
DOI: 10.1016/j.jsams.2023.07.011

Abstract

Insight regarding the impact of COVID-19 on return to sporting participation is a key issue for many athletes. We report time-loss following respiratory tract infection (RTI), over the pandemic, in UK athletes preparing for international competition. During the study, 566 athletes developed COVID-19 and 217 developed other causes of RTI. Time-loss from COVID-19 reduced from a median (interquartile range) of 27 days (13- 40) in April-June 2020 to 10 days (8-13) from October-December 2022 (P<0.001). There was no change in time-loss following RTi (P=0.13). The time-loss period following COVID-19 has shortened over the pandemic. Further work is needed to explore why some athletes still have prolonged sporting time-loss.

Keywords: Athlete; COVID-19; Respiratory; SARS-CoV-2; Sport.

MeSH terms

Athletes
COVID-19* / epidemiology
Humans
Respiratory Tract Infections*
Sports*