Getty Images/Artist GND Photo
of research summary A short take on an interesting academic study.
big idea
Even mild COVID-19 cases can have significant long-term effects on people’s health. This is one of our key findings. Recent multilateral research On Long COVID-19 (or Long COVID) recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
long COVID defined Continuation or onset of symptoms 3 months after initial infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. These symptoms persist for at least 2 months after onset without any other explanation.
We found that a staggering 90% of people with long-term COVID-19 initially experienced only mild illness. However, after a prolonged period of COVID-19, a typical person experiences symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath, and cognitive impairment such as brain fog (or a combination of these), affecting daily functioning. These symptoms had a serious impact on health. Long-term effects of traumatic brain injuryOur study found that women are twice as likely as men and four times as likely as children to develop COVID over the long term.
We analyzed data from 54 studies reporting on more than 1 million people in 22 countries who experienced symptoms of COVID-19. Count the number of people who have COVID-19 and develop new, long-lasting clusters of her COVID symptoms due to COVID-19, based on age, gender, and whether she has been hospitalized with COVID-19 , determined how the risk of developing the disease changed.
We found that patients who were hospitalized with COVID-19 had a higher risk of developing long-lasting COVID and prolonged symptoms compared to those who were not hospitalized. However, because the majority of COVID-19 cases do not require hospitalization, more long-lasting cases of her COVID have occurred from these mild cases, despite the low risk. Our study found that among all people long-term with COVID, nearly 1 in 7 of her still experienced these symptoms a year after her, and researchers found that these It is not yet known how many of these cases may become chronic.
A long COVID can affect almost every organ in the body.
why it matters
Compared to COVID-19, Little is known about the long COVID.
A systematic analysis of this situation across countries reveals that the human and economic costs of prolonged COVID-19 around the world could be significantly higher. Many people living with the condition adults of working ageNot being able to work for months can cause people to lose their income, livelihood and housing. Parents and caregivers living with COVID-19 for an extended period of time may be unable to care for their loved ones.
Based on the long-term prevalence and severity of COVID, we believe people are unable to work, leading to labor shortages. Long term his COVID too, people who lose their jobs It has disproportionately affected women.
We believe that finding effective and affordable treatments for people living longer with COVID is a priority for researchers and research funders.A long COVID clinic has opened provide professional carebut the treatments they offer are limited, inconsistent, and can be costly.
what’s next
The long COVID is a complex and dynamic state. Some symptoms disappear, then recur, and new symptoms appear. But researchers still don’t know why.
Our research focused on the three most common symptoms associated with long-term COVID that affect daily functioning, including, among others, loss of smell and taste, insomnia, Symptoms such as gastrointestinal problems, headaches, etc. may also be included.
There are many open questions about what makes people more susceptible to long-term COVID.For example, how different Risk factorDoes smoking and a high body mass index, including smoking, affect a person’s chances of developing this condition? reinfected Does using SARS-CoV-2 change long-term COVID risk? Also, it is unclear how long-term COVID protection changes over time after a person becomes infected got vaccinated Or boosted against COVID-19.
The COVID-19 variant also presents new puzzles.researchers know that Omicron variant Less deadly than previous strains.first evidence shows Low risk of long-term COVID from omicron compared to previous strains, but much more data is needed.
Most of the people we surveyed deadlier variant It was around before Omicron got the upper hand. We will continue to follow his long-term COVID research. global burden of disease To get a clearer picture of how the long-term toll of COVID-19 has changed since Omicron arrived, make estimates of deaths and disabilities from all illnesses and injuries in all countries of the world. the study.
Sarah Wolfe Hanson Principal Investigator of Global Health Metrics, University of Washington When Theo Vos Professor of Health Indicator Science, University of Washington
This article is reprinted from conversation Under Creative Commons License.read Original work.
