Silent hypoxia in patients with SARS CoV-2 infection before hospital discharge
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- Silent hypoxia in patients with SARS CoV-2 infection beforehospital discharge
Final published version, 363 KB, PDF document
Objective: To assess the degree of hypoxia and subjective dyspnea elicited by a 6-minute walking test (6MWT) in COVID-19 patients prior to discharge. Methods: A 6MWT was performed in 26 discharge-ready COVID-19 patients without chronic pulmonary disease or cardiac failure. Heart rate, oxyhemoglobin saturation (SpO2), respiratory rate, and subjective dyspnea measured on the Borg CR-10 scale were measured before and immediately after the 6MWT, with continuous monitoring of SpO2 and heart rate during the 6MWT. The 6MWT was terminated if SpO2 dropped below 90%. A historical cohort of 204 patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) was used for comparison. Results: 13 (50%) of the COVID-19 patients developed exercise-induced hypoxia (SpO2 < 90%) during the 6MWT, of which one third had pulmonary embolism. COVID-19 patients experienced less hypoxia-related dyspnea during the 6MWT compared with patients with IPF. Conclusion: The 6MWT is a potential tool in the diagnosis of asymptomatic exercise-induced hypoxia in hospitalized COVID-19 patients prior to discharge. Due to important methodological limitations, further studies are needed to confirm our findings and to investigate their clinical consequences.
Original language | English |
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Journal | International Journal of Infectious Diseases |
Volume | 99 |
Pages (from-to) | 100-101 |
ISSN | 1201-9712 |
DOIs |
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Publication status | Published - Oct 2020 |
- COVID-19, Discharge, Dyspnea, Exercise test, Hypoxia
Research areas
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