Is there a difference in vascular reactivity between healthy individuals and post-COVID-19 patients as assessed by infrared spectroscopy?

<bold>Introduction:</bold> Near-infrared spectroscopy and the vascular occlusion test (VOT) can be used to assess the vascular effects of COVID-19 diagnosis after hospitalization. <bold>Objectives:</bold> To compare the vascular reactivity of patients hospitalized with a COVID-19 diagnosis with that of healthy individuals. <bold>Methods:</bold> Prospective study carried out with two groups: healthy individuals, over 18 years old, without comorbidities; patients who were hospitalized with a diagnosis of COVID-19 and discharged within a period between 60 and 120 days. The study compared the following variables: basal saturation (Sto)%, desaturation (DS)%/min, minimum saturation (Smin)%, maximum saturation (Stmax)%, and resaturation rate (RS)%/min. <bold>Results:</bold> The study included 66 volunteers in the control group, consisting of 37 men with a mean age of 39±14 years. In the post-COVID-19 group, 47 patients were included, 35 of whom were men, with a mean age of 56±17 years. The post-COVID-19 group showed significantly lower values for the variables StO2, Smin, and Stmáx (p≤0.001), and the DS and RS rates were significantly longer (p≤0.001) compared to the control group. <bold>Conclusions:</bold> Patients who have been hospitalized with COVID-19 continue to exhibit alterations in vascular reactivity after discharge when compared to healthy individuals.