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. 2021 Jun:288:103644.
doi: 10.1016/j.resp.2021.103644. Epub 2021 Feb 27.

Pulmonary function and functional capacity in COVID-19 survivors with persistent dyspnoea

Arturo Cortés-Telles  1 , Stephanie López-Romero  2 , Esperanza Figueroa-Hurtado  3 , Yuri Noemi Pou-Aguilar  3 , Alyson W Wong  4 , Kathryn M Milne  4 , Christopher J Ryerson  4 , Jordan A Guenette  5
Affiliations

Pulmonary function and functional capacity in COVID-19 survivors with persistent dyspnoea

Arturo Cortés-Telles et al. Respir Physiol Neurobiol. 2021 Jun.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the physiological mechanisms of persistent dyspnoea in COVID-19 survivors. Non-critical patients (n = 186) with varying degrees of COVID-19 severity reported persistent symptoms using a standardized questionnaire and underwent pulmonary function and 6-minute walk testing between 30 and 90 days following the onset of acute COVID-19 symptoms. Patients were divided into those with (n = 70) and without (n = 116) persistent dyspnoea. Patients with persistent dyspnoea had significantly lower FVC (p = 0.03), FEV1 (p = 0.04), DLCO (p = 0.01), 6-minute walk distance (% predicted, p = 0.03), and end-exercise oxygen saturation (p < 0.001), and higher Borg 0-10 ratings of dyspnoea and fatigue (both p < 0.001) compared to patients without persistent dyspnoea. We have shown that dyspnoea is a common persistent symptom across varying degrees of initial COVID-19 severity. Patients with persistent dyspnoea had greater restriction on spirometry, lower DLCO, reduced functional capacity, and increased exertional desaturation and symptoms. This suggests that there is a true physiological mechanism that may explain persistent dyspnoea after COVID-19.

Keywords: 6-Minute walk test; Breathlessness; Persistent symptoms; SARS-CoV-2.

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