Good scientific study or BS: If you've had Covid, you may be more susceptible to getting injured as a runner

sample size

pupil3142 wrote:

sample size

ditto

BS

What a time we're living in..."Gait & Posture" journal. An embarrassment of academic riches.

Not that I'm complaining per se about this journal existing - but, wow!

COVID 19 is a vascular virus. It has been shown to cause musculoskeletal symptoms that have been objectively verified.

That being said, the study is garbage. You really would need to test people before and after COVID to get any sort of meaningful information. The COVID group in the study may have just had an overrepresentation of people who were just lousy at running or not in very good shape to begin with regardless of COVID.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210217151116.htm

The EMG data is interesting, it's not the best controlled study but you have to admit some of the effect sizes are large enough that something is different between the groups. Poor randomization? Confounding factors w.r.t. gait and COVID exposure? Who knows.

Seriously, what is their theory even on how Covid changes biomechanics? Or is this as simple as, runners that take time off are more likely to have injuries when the initially start running again.

ohms wrote:

Seriously, what is their theory even on how Covid changes biomechanics? Or is this as simple as, runners that take time off are more likely to have injuries when the initially start running again.

They seem to have controlled for miles/week.

I think the theory is neuromuscular disruptions from viral infection and resulting inflammation. Not really a novel hypothesis.

Total BS.

What do you guys think is driving the effects seen here?

I agree it's suspect but it's good to come up with reasons rather than just summarily discounting.

None of the runners from either group actually developed injuries. I don't know anything about this area of investigation but is there a body of literature establishing a causal relationship between the types of kinetics they are measuring and actual injuries? I would want to see that first before giving any credence to their implications.

Lol. The Covid group had lower glute activation. :)

I think for this to be a valid study you have to study the same subjects before and after Covid. Seems just as likely that the Covid group had these problems before getting Covid.

Might just be people with poor mechanics are the same people that are likely to get sick.

Try getting positive control - have healthy people lay around in bed for same time as those in hospital. You'd probably see similar muscle deactivation/lack of recruitment in them too.

Running on a treadmill 2 weeks after admittance to a hospital and not fully recovered must have sucked.

I call BS.

"These changes are not a result of the virus itself, but are because of the need to quarantine. "

Basically everything from that Canadian running magazine is BS.

Ok so sitting inside lowers muscular response and activation

Surprise!!

did they control for the likelihood that the covid 19 cohort was fat?

it has to be good because we have to follow the science. how can we question science?

Perhaps those who have tested positive for Covid, were less healthy to begin with. And had worse form to begin with.

As P Roy wrote above, really need to assess before and after Covid if you want to see if infection changed them.