Effects of increasing aerobic capacity on improving psychological problems seen in patients with COVID-19: a review

M. Amro, A. Mohamed, M. Alawna

Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Allied Medical Sciences, Arab American University, Jenin, Palestine. motaz.alawna@aaup.edu

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• Infectious Diseases

OBJECTIVE: In response to the COVID-19 disaster, people have developed several psychological problems mainly stress, anxiety, and depression. These psychological problems have been seen in either normal people during the lockdown (who are waiting to get infected with COVID-19) and patients with COVID-19 (who are waiting for death). These psychological problems adversely affect immune functions causing more increase in the severity of COVID-19 associated disorders and death rates. Increasing the aerobic capacity is one of the effective methods that could be used to decrease stress, anxiety, and depression. Besides, increasing the aerobic capacity increases immune functions through autonomic regulation. Thus, this review was developed to summarize the effect of increasing the aerobic capacity on psycho-immune hormones commonly disturbed in people during the lockdown or patients with COVID-19 infection.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: This review was carried out by searching through Web of Science, Scopus, EBSCO, Medline databases. The search was conducted over clinical trials, literature reviews, and systematic reviews. The search included the possible effects of increasing the aerobic capacity on the functions of psycho-immune hormones.

RESULTS: This review found that increasing the aerobic capacity can decrease psychological problems commonly seen in people with COVID-19 and increase immune functions by modulating the levels of glucocorticoid, oxytocin, insulin, thyroid hormones.

CONCLUSIONS: This review demonstrated that increasing the aerobic capacity is a recommended treatment for decreasing the psychological problems commonly seen in people with COVID-19 because it has the potential for decreasing psychological problems and improving immune functions which would help counter COVID-19.

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