Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35140062›Full record

ArticleBritish journal of sports medicine2022

Small steps, strong shield: directly measured, moderate physical activity in 65 361 adults is associated with significant protective effects from severe COVID-19 outcomes.

Lizelle Steenkamp, Robin Terence Saggers, Rossella Bandini, Saverio Stranges, Yun-Hee Choi, Jane S Thornton, Simon Hendrie, Deepak Patel, Shannon Rabinowitz, Jon Patricios

Open access · hybridAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in British journal of sports medicine, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 39 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
39citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
7.2field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

39 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 67 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Review
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.

Lizelle SteenkampDiscovery Ltd, Sandton, South Africa.
Robin Terence SaggersWits Sport and Health (WiSH), School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6593-8049
Rossella BandiniPRINCE: Project to Improve Neonatal Care, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Wits University, Johannesburg-Braamfontein, Gauteng, South Africa.
Saverio StrangesUniversity of Western Ontario Faculty of Health Sciences, London, Ontario, Canada.
Yun-Hee ChoiSchulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, Ontario, Canada.
Jane S ThorntonPublic Health and Family Medicine, University of Western Ontario Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, Ontario, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3519-7101
Simon HendrieDiscovery Health, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Deepak PatelDiscovery Ltd, Sandton, South Africa.
Shannon RabinowitzDiscovery Health, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Jon PatriciosWits Sport and Health (WiSH), School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa jpat@mweb.co.za.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6829-4098
University of the Witwatersrand · ZAWestern University · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo determine the association between directly measured physical activity and hospitalisation, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, ventilation and mortality rates in patients with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19.

methodsDirectly measured physical activity data from 65 361 adult patients with a COVID-19 diagnosis from 19 March 2020 to 30 June 2021, were grouped by activity level: low (<60 min/week), moderate (60-149 min/week) and high activity (≥150 min/week). The association of physical activity levels and the risk of adverse outcomes was analysed using modified Poisson regression. We accounted for demographics and comorbidities including conditions known to influence COVID-19 outcomes, as well as patient complexity as measured by the Johns Hopkins Adjusted Clinical Group system. The regression approach was further validated with a Bayesian network model built off a directed acyclic graph.

resultsHigh physical activity was associated with lower rates of hospitalisation (risk ratio, RR 0.66, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.70), ICU admission (RR 0.59, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.66), ventilation (RR 0.55, 95% CI 0.47 to 0.64) and death (RR 0.58, 95% CI 0.50 to 0.68) due to COVID-19 than those who engaged in low physical activity. Moderate physical activity also was associated with lower rates of hospitalisation (RR 0.87, 95% CI 0.82 to 0.91), admission to ICU (RR 0.80, 95% CI 0.71 to 0.89), ventilation (RR 0.73, 95% CI 0.62 to 0.84) and death (RR 0.79, 95% CI 0.69 to 0.91).

conclusionsAdults with high and moderate physical activity levels had significantly better outcomes than those with low activity when contracting COVID-19. The apparent protective effects of regular physical activity extended to those with concomitant chronic medical conditions.

Indexed as

COVID-19AdultBayes TheoremCOVID-19 TestingExerciseHumansSARS-CoV-2COVID-19exercisephysical activity

Identifiers

PMID35140062
PMCPMC8844956
OpenAlexW4210909333

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.