Effects of a New Multicomponent Nutritional Supplement on Muscle Mass and Physical Performance in Adult and Old Patients Recovered from COVID-19: A Pilot Observational Case-Control Study.

What Was Tested

This observational study looks at Copper (Supplement).

The purpose of the present study was to assess the effect of a specific oral nutritional supplement among patients recovered from COVID-19 but suffering symptoms of fatigue.

Who Took Part

The study group was 33 subjects.

This is an observational case-control study involving a sample of 66 COVID-19 survivors divided in two groups, 33 subjects in the intervention group who received the nutritional supplement and 33 subjects in the control group.

The nutritional supplement received by subjects in the active group was based on amino acids; vitamin B6 and B1; and malic, succinic and citric acids.

How the Study Was Run

After an 8-week follow-up, the main outcomes considered were skeletal muscle index (measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis), physical performance measures (handgrip strength, one-minute chair-stand test, six-minute walking test), and quality of life (using EuroQol visual analogue scale).

What Was Measured

PubMed files the paper under topics including COVID-19, Case-Control Studies, Dietary Supplements, Fatigue, Hand Strength, Muscle Strength and Muscle, Skeletal.

The authors tagged it with the keywords frailty, geriatric syndrome and personalized medicine.

What This Means in Plain Language

This is an observational study of Copper (Supplement) in 33 subjects.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

Its findings take up roughly 5 sentences of the abstract and are left out here on purpose; the source paper is the place to read them.

The publication is from 2022 (Nutrients), a journal based in Switzerland.

More context: the Copper (Supplement) compound page, all human trials.