This year in mid-November, the international elite of sports medicine will meet in Düsseldorf, Germany for the tenth time at the MEDICA MEDICINE + SPORTS CONFERENCE, which is part of the world's leading medical trade fair MEDICA. The English-language conference will bring together renowned experts from the fields of applied sports medicine, sports science, physiotherapy and technical fields to discuss innovative approaches in prevention, therapy and recovery in professional and health sports across their respective disciplines. The event will take place in the Congress Center Düsseldorf (CCD Süd) of the Düsseldorf fairgrounds on November 16 - 17 (MEDICA 2022 will be held from November 14 - 17).
Thus, the discipline of sports medicine worldwide still has to deal with the consequences of the Covid pandemic in many ways. On November 16, Prof. Alexandra Nieters, head of the research group at the Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI) at the University of Freiburg Medical Center, will for the first time present the results of a comprehensive post-Covid study with more than half a million cases. One of her previous studies has already shown that at 6 to 12 months after even a light, acute SARS-CoV-2 infection, the impact remains high even for young and middle-aged adults. There are remaining negative effects on general health and the ability to work.
However, after recovering from an infection, many people feel more reassured concerning a possible new infection. But is this optimism really justified? Prof. Nieters will offer at least hints for answers to this important question. So far, there is no reason not to be vigilant. Whether a Covid-19 infection can cause health risks and chronic performance issues for athletes will be addressed by Manuel Widman from the department of sports medicine at the University Hospital and Faculty of Medicine, Tübingen. He will present the first results of the "CoSmo-S" study. This is intended to help evaluate the personal health risk that comes with a SARS-CoV-2 infection in sports and when engaging in athletic activities again. Cardiologist Prof. Andreas Hagendorff, head of the echocardiographic laboratories of the University of Leipzig Medical Center, will propose a new diagnostic approach from a cardiological perspective, based on his experience in the daily treatment of Covid sufferers, which could assist in "return-to-play" decisions worldwide. Hagendorff will further explain his approach during a lecture at the conference. Prof. Rembert Koczulla, chief physician at the center for pulmonology at the Schoen Clinic in Berchtesgadener Land and professor at the University of Marburg, will be the leading coordinator of the "Long/Post-COVID" treatment guideline. In Düsseldorf, he will present the latest recommendations from the perspective of pulmonology.
