ROVERETO. After contracting the Covid, anyone who engages in competitive sporting activities must repeat the sport visit to start over. Thus, in Rovereto, the Cerism (Sports, Mountain and Health Research Center, directed by professor Federico Schena) is often struggling with returning athletes.
But the research center (set up by the University of Verona) is not limited to physical tests: it collects data and analyzes the situation. To better understand what it means to have contracted the disease, we spoke with the doctor Gianluigi Dorelli.
Doctor Dorelli, we often hear about coronavirus positive sportsmen: footballers, volleyball players, basketball players, swimmers, cyclists, skiers … What does taking Covid mean for an athlete?
«In the meantime, it should be remembered that anyone who has contracted the disease in a medium-severe form has often had to deal with mood and sleep disorders once recovered. In people who are a little older, even with a cognitive decline such as memory loss “.
What do you mean by medium-severe form? Hospitalized people?
“Not necessarily. Let’s say that I am referring to someone who has had a fever for five or six days. When the fever remains for several days it is very likely that a viraemia has occurred: in simple terms it means that the virus circulates in the tissues of the whole organism. This circulation can promote local inflammation and the worst is myocarditis, that is, inflammation of the heart “.
And does this also apply to athletes?
“Certain. After Covid, all visits are mainly used to exclude myocarditis “.
Can you briefly explain what myocarditis is?
«In a nutshell, let’s say that the heart is made of muscle, fibrous tissue that creates the structure, and a conduction tissue that carries the electrical impulses causing the contraction. When there is myocarditis, the mechanisms that condition the electrical impulse can go on their own and, in the worst case, degenerate into arrhythmias. Which, to be clear, are the main cause of athletes’ deaths ».
And does Covid often trigger myocarditis?
“No. As far as we have been able to detect, the connection is not very frequent but at the end of the illness it must be excluded at all costs and for this reason a targeted visit is made ».
Is an athlete compromised if he has myocarditis?
«Generally, especially in young and athletic subjects, myocarditis is reversible. To give an example: all cases of myocarditis attributable to the vaccine (it is a side effect) have been managed without any compromise. However, I would remember that the cases of myocarditis caused by the vaccine are infinitely fewer than those due to the contraction of the disease “.
Besides myocarditis, after Covid, what other problems can arise for a professional or amateur athlete?
“In our studies we have noticed that about a quarter of athletes who have contracted Covid, even mildly, still after six months or more, have respiratory inefficiency: under exertion they breathe a little more than would be necessary” .
What is it due to?
“We haven’t been able to explain it yet. We have observed it but we are still working to understand the causes. It can be a phenomenon induced directly by the virus but it could also be a compensation for those who have had lung disease ».
Have you noticed any other types of consequences?
“Some athletes who have passed the disease in mild form feel sluggish after recovery and even the athletic tests are less effective. They say they can’t push or get short of breath. And this despite the fact that they do not present any clinical anomalies, therefore myocarditis or respiratory inefficiencies “.
And did you understand what this consequence is due to?
“We are studying. We are also looking to see if this exhaustion under exertion could be caused by the lack of training that produced the virus. Because we are talking about athletes ».
Are the cases we are talking about frequent?
«No, the great majority of those who contracted the virus in a mild form return exactly as before, especially the young, but we as specialists must verify what can happen. They are limited cases but there are. “
According to your studies, is sports really an antidote to Covid?
“The risk factors that can significantly degenerate Covid are mainly high blood pressure, diabetes and being overweight. Let’s say that those who exercise regularly and even with a certain intensity, certainly reduce the chances of crossing Covid with other risk factors. Then if the question explicitly concerns the coronavirus, I have no data available to answer. Certainly, however, it is better to clarify that no one can feel immune from Covid because they play sports “.