<\/em>Infected adults regularly meeting physical activity guidelines have lower risk for hospitalization, death<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n <\/b><\/p>\n <\/b><\/p>\n WEDNESDAY, April 14, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Among adults infected with COVID-19, those consistently meeting physical activity guidelines have a significantly reduced risk for severe COVID-19 outcomes compared with inactive individuals, according to a study published online April 13 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine<\/em>.<\/p>\n Robert Sallis, from the Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Fontana, California, and colleagues compared hospitalization rates, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and mortality for patients with COVID-19 based on self-reported physical activity. The analysis included 48,440 adult patients with a COVID-19 diagnosis between Jan. 1, 2020, and Oct. 21, 2020, with at least three exercise vital sign measurements from March 19, 2018, to March 18, 2020.<\/p>\n The researchers found that patients with COVID-19 who were consistently inactive (0 to 10 minutes\/week) had a greater risk for COVID-19-related hospitalization (odds ratio [OR], 2.26; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.81 to 2.83), admission to the ICU (OR, 1.73; 95 percent CI, 1.18 to 2.55), and death (OR, 2.49; 95 percent CI, 1.33 to 4.67) versus patients who were consistently meeting physical activity guidelines (150+ minutes\/week). Similar findings were seen when comparing patients who were consistently inactive to patients doing some physical activity (11 to 149 minutes\/week), including a greater risk for COVID-19-related hospitalization (OR, 1.20; 95 percent CI, 1.10 to 1.32), admission to the ICU (OR, 1.10; 95 percent CI, 0.93 to 1.29), and death (OR, 1.32; 95 percent CI, 1.09 to 1.60).<\/p>\n “We recommend efforts to promote physical activity be prioritized by public health agencies and incorporated into routine medical care,” the authors write.<\/p>\n One author disclosed financial ties to Roche\/Genentech.<\/p>\n