Impact of Exercise on Covid-19 Patients in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The importance of exercise is improving the human body in different ways. Studies have shown that physical activity has a relationship with the enhancement of the immune system and maintains the body in a fit state, which explains the positive results of exposure to infection. Aim of the study: To measure the effectiveness of moderate exercise concerning symptoms, severity, and the recovery rate in COVID-19 patients METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study conducted in main cities in the Qassim region of Saudi Arabia. This investigation was undertaken during the pandemic of COVID-19, targeting individuals diagnosed with COVID-19. The final sample size was 385 individuals out of the 1,450,000 million Saudi Arabia population in Al-Qassim. The data was collected using a Self-administered online questionnaire and analyzed using statistical software SPSS. RESULTS: A total of 186 participants were included in this study. The majority of respondents were female (68.8%), most of the respondents (47.3%) were normal weight, and 35.5% were overweight. Regarding the medical history of COVID19 infection (75.8%), they are infected with COVID19. A statistically significant association was found between exercise practice and the disappearance of symptoms (p<0.01). It disappeared early during exercise. In addition, normal-weight respondents resolved their symptoms faster than other respondents (p <0.05). The results show that the most common and less common symptoms of COVID-19 were most frequently reported among normal weight respondents, and the most severe symptoms were most frequently reported among overweight respondents (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: The present study results show that moderate exercise in patients with COVID-19 can be a valuable tool to improve symptoms, severity, and the recovery rate in COVID-19 patients. Moreover, our results showed that overweight patients were correlated with a severe clinical course of COVID-19.