Symptoms, complications and management of long COVID: a review

Abstract

Globally, there are now over 160 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and more than 3 million deaths. While the majority of infected individuals recover, a significant proportion continue to experience symptoms and complications after their acute illness. Patients with ‘long COVID’ experience a wide range of physical and mental/psychological symptoms. Pooled prevalence data showed the 10 most prevalent reported symptoms were fatigue, shortness of breath, muscle pain, joint pain, headache, cough, chest pain, altered smell, altered taste and diarrhoea. Other common symptoms were cognitive impairment, memory loss, anxiety and sleep disorders. Beyond symptoms and complications, people with long COVID often reported impaired quality of life, mental health and employment issues. These individuals may require multidisciplinary care involving the long-term monitoring of symptoms, to identify potential complications, physical rehabilitation, mental health and social services support. Resilient healthcare systems are needed to ensure efficient and effective responses to future health challenges.

Post-COVID-19 Sydrome and Decrease in Health-Related Quality of Life in Kidney Transplant Recipients after SARS-COV-2 Infection—A Cohort Longitudinal Study from the North of Poland

“…It should be taken into account, however, that the course of COVID-19 in our cohort was mostly mild without significant respiratory involvement. As in other studies, hair loss, sleep difficulties, myalgia, and memory disturbances were some of the most frequently reported persistent symptoms [ 1 , 19 ]. Hair loss was the second most frequently reported complaint, which in KTR may result from the cumulative effects of COVID-19 consequences, and the side effects of immunosuppressants, in particular tacrolimus [ 25 ].…”

“…We found here that fatigue was the most common persistent symptom in KTR that was consistent with data from the long-term follow-up study of Huang et al in the general population and KTR from India [ 15 , 19 ]. Although our cohort reported feeling more breathless compared with the period before infection, it was not the dominant persistent symptom as presented earlier by Basic-Jukic in KTR and other studies from the general population [ 1 , 10 ]. It should be taken into account, however, that the course of COVID-19 in our cohort was mostly mild without significant respiratory involvement.…”

“…The most common persisting symptoms include fatigue, muscle and joint pain, shortness of breath, headache, cough, chest pain, altered smell and taste, diarrhea, cognitive impairment, anxiety, and sleep disorders. The complications may be respiratory, cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, neurological, thromboembolic, autoimmune, among others [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. Clinicians worldwide have coined the term for the persistent cluster of these symptoms and abnormalities as “post-COVID syndrome”, which may be further sub-categorized into either acute or chronic subtypes, depending on whether symptoms extend beyond 12 weeks following the initial diagnosis [ 4 ].…”

How Does Psychological Distress Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on Internet Addiction and Instagram Addiction in Emerging Adults?

“…Moreover, as suggested above, further studies should investigate the role of other variables, such as personality traits or attachment styles, in the complex interplay between alexithymia and Internet/Instagram addiction. Finally, it is important to underline that recent studies are evaluating the presence of peritraumatic symptoms due to the long-COVID syndrome [ 153 , 154 ]. If, on the one hand, in our sample, no differences were found in the psychological variables measured between emerging adults infected by COVID-19 and those not infected, on the other hand, emerging adults infected by COVID-19 only represented 9% of the sample and no data were obtained on the date on which the subjects were infected.…”

“Long COVID” follow-up pathway: results of longitudinal cohort study to investigate 6- and 12-month outcomes after hospitalization for SARS-CoV-2 infection

“…Published studies investigating the highly heterogeneous and poorly understood post-COVID-19 syndrome show the relevance of medical and psychological sequelae for several months after active infection, with more than 50 long-term effects of COVID-19 having been reported 39 . Pooled prevalence data show that the 10 most prevalent symptoms are fatigue, shortness of breath, muscle pain, joint pain, headache, cough, chest pain, altered smell, altered taste, and diarrhea 40 . The increasingly evident longterm neurological effects include the impact of the virus on cognition, autonomic function, and mental wellbeing 41 .…”