Post-COVID-19 Condition in Track and Field Master Athletes: Severity, Symptoms, and Associations With Quality of Life and [CRP] Levels, 2025, Zhang+

[forestglip]

Post-COVID-19 Condition in Track and Field Master Athletes: Severity, Symptoms, and Associations With Quality of Life and C-Reactive Protein Levels

Boyi Zhang, Marijke Grau, Christian Puta, Daniel Arvidsson, Michael Arz, Jonas Böcker, Philip Chilibeck, Scott C. Forbes, Claudia Kaiser-Stolz, Natalie McLaurin, Eri Miyamoto-Mikami, Dominik Pesta, Willi Pustowalow, Hirofumi Tanaka, Jörn Rittweger, Wilhelm Bloch

[Line breaks added]

Abstract
Here, we assessed the prevalence of post-COVID-condition (PCC, also known as long-COVID) and investigated its associations with health-related quality of life and immune-related biomarkers in track and field masters athletes (MAs).

A total of 216 MAs (114 males, 102 females; age: 58.3 ± 11.9 vs. 56.6 ± 11.7 years; BMI: 23.6 [22.2–24.8] vs. 21.3 [20.0–23.6] kg/m2) reported their post-COVID-conditions via the Post-COVID Syndrome Questionnaire (PCSQ). In a subgroup of 108 MAs, fasting blood samples were collected to assess C-reactive protein (CRP) levels as a biomarker of immune status (MAs-CRP). Based on their PCSQ sum score, MAs were divided into three groups: no/mild, moderate, and severe. Associations between PCC severity and sex, athletic specialty, and competition level were evaluated using Fisher's exact test.

Forty-six (21%) MAs were identified with clinically relevant moderate-to-severe post-COVID-19 conditions (PCSQ score > 10.75). The most frequently reported symptoms included musculoskeletal pain (15%), sleep disturbance (13%), sensory or respiratory symptoms (11%), fatigue (11%), and flu-like symptoms (11%). PCC prevalence did not differ by sex, athletic specialties, training load, or prior competition level (all p > 0.05). MAs with moderate-to-severe PCC had significantly lower physical and mental component scores of quality of life compared with those with no or mild symptoms (p < 0.05).

In the MAs-CRP subgroup, self-reported cardiac ailments and flu-like symptoms were significantly and positively associated with CRP levels (Spearman ρ = 0.27–0.30, all p < 0.01).

Post-COVID-19 condition is associated with reduced quality of life in track and field masters athletes, independent of sex, prior competition levels, and training characteristics. Furthermore, low-grade inflammation based on CRP levels was associated with self-reported cardiac and flu-like symptoms.

Link | PDF (Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports) [Open Access]

 

[Sean]

Post-COVID-19 condition is associated with reduced quality of life in track and field masters athletes, independent of sex, prior competition levels, and training characteristics.

Interesting.

 

[Eleanor]

No significant differences in PCC prevalence were found across sex (p = 0.46; Figure 1B) and athletic specialties (p = 0.31), although strength and power MAs were more frequently classified with moderate (20%) or severe (10%) PCC compared with the other two specialties

we observed that strength/power athletes (e.g., throwing and jumping disciplines) had a higher proportion of moderate-to-severe PCC cases, with PCSQ scores significantly exceeding those of endurance and sprint athletes. This discrepancy may reflect the different physiological adaptations associated with different sports disciplines. Strength and power events involve high-load, intermittent efforts that may trigger distinct neuromuscular and immune stress responses, such as increased oxidative stress and chronic inflammation [16], which could contribute to both the onset and prolonged recovery of PCC symptoms. In contrast, endurance MAs tend to exhibit greater antioxidant capacity and superior cardiopulmonary adaptation [43], which may help reduce postinfection inflammatory burden and facilitate faster recovery. These differences in physiological adaptation may partially explain variations in PCC manifestation across athletic disciplines,
though further longitudinal research is needed to validate this hypothesis.

Edited to add: maybe it's the other way round from their hypothesis. Maybe athletes with Long Covid are more likely to be able to still compete if they do a throwing or jumping discipline involving brief bursts of effort with rests in between, while those in endurance disciplines are less likely to be able to compete at all (and thus aren't included in this study).

 

[Eleanor]

data collection was conducted in a real-world competitive setting of a world master athletic championship, enhancing the ecological validity of the findings and their applicability to real-life conditions.

[...] self-selection bias may have occurred if athletes with severe PCC chose not to compete, potentially underestimating symptom severity.

 

[Midnattsol]

The «low» prevalence of ~20% was potentially attributed to high levels of physical activity that other studies have found to be protective.

Just because other studies have found higher levels of prevalence, calling a prevalence of 20% «low» is problematic.