Physical Activity and Microvascular Endothelial Dysfunction After SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Open Access
- Author:
- Swanger, Faith
- Area of Honors:
- Kinesiology
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Lacy Marie Alexander, Thesis Supervisor
Lacy Marie Alexander, Thesis Honors Advisor
William Lawrence Kenney, Jr., Faculty Reader - Keywords:
- physical activity
microvascular function
COVID-19 - Abstract:
- Infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus can affect the body in many ways with vascular dysfunction being reported as one change in the body. The purpose of this project is to examine the impacts of physical activity behavior and SARS-CoV-2 infection on cutaneous microvascular function in healthy, young adults. It was hypothesized that young adults recovering from COVID-19 will have impaired microvascular function compared to adults that did not have COVID-19. A cross-sectional study was performed including 10 (5 men/5 women, 24 ± 4 yr) healthy control (HC) adults who were unvaccinated for COVID-19, 11 (4 men/7 women, 25 ± 6 yr) healthy vaccinated (HV) adults, and 12 (5 men/7 women, 22 ± 3 yr) post-COVID-19 (PC, 19 ± 14 wk) adults. Physical activity behavior over a week was quantified using accelerometers (Actigraph GT9X, LLC, Pensacola, FL). A standardized 39°C local heating protocol was used to assess NO-dependent vasodilation via perfusion (intradermal microdialysis) of 15 mM NG-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester during the plateau of the heating response. Red blood cell flux was measured (laser-Doppler flowmetry) and cutaneous vascular conductance (CVC = flux/mmHg) was expressed as a percentage of maximum (28 mM sodium nitroprusside + 43°C). We found that the physical activity behavior was not different among groups (sedentary: p=0.30, light: p=0.89, m-vv: p=0.10). The local heating plateau (HC: 61 ± 20%, HV: 60 ± 19%, PC: 67 ± 19%, P = 0.80) and NO-dependent vasodilation (HC: 77 ± 9%, HV: 71 ± 7%, PC: 70 ± 10%, P = 0.36) were not different among groups. Neither symptom severity (25 ± 12 AU) nor time since diagnosis correlated with the NO-dependent vasodilation (r = 0.46, P = 0.13; r = 0.41, P = 0.19, respectively). In conclusion, healthy adults who have had mild-to-moderate COVID-19 do not have impaired cutaneous microvascular function regardless of physical activity behavior.