May 2022 - General
This is a new literature review updated in May 2022. In case some essential information is missing, please contact us at: : rafael@hcuge.ch.
Long COVID 12 months after discharge: persistent symptoms in patients hospitalised due to COVID-19 and patients hospitalised due to other causes—a multicentre cohort study
Rivera-Izquierdo M, Láinez-Ramos-Bossini AJ, de Alba IG, Ortiz-González-Serna R, Serrano-Ortiz Á, Fernández-Martínez NF, Ruiz-Montero R, Cervilla JA. BMC Med 20, 92 (2022). doi: 10.1186/s12916-022-02292-6.
This prospective cohort study evaluated 906 adult patients; 453 patients hospitalised due to COVID-19 (exposed) and 453 hospitalised due to other causes (non-exposed) from March 1 to April 15, 2020, and discharged alive. The main outcomes were (1) the prevalence of long-term-specific sequelae or persistent symptoms (SPS) at 12 months after discharge and (2) the incidence of SPS after discharge. Outcome data at 12 months were compared between the exposed and non-exposed cohorts. Risk ratios were calculated, and bivariate analyses were performed. A total of 163 (36.1%) and 160 (35.3%) patients of the exposed and non-exposed cohorts, respectively, showed at least one SPS at 12 months after discharge. The SPS with higher prevalence in the subgroup of patients hospitalised due to COVID-19 12 months after discharge were persistent pharyngeal symptoms (p<0.001), neurological SPS (p=0.049), confusion or memory loss (p=0.043), thrombotic events (p=0.025) and anxiety (p=0.046). The incidence of SPS was higher for the exposed cohort regarding pharyngeal symptoms (risk ratio, 8.00; 95% CI, 1.85 to 36.12), confusion or memory loss (risk ratio, 3.50; 95% CI, 1.16 to 10.55) and anxiety symptoms (risk ratio, 2.36; 95% CI, 1.28 to 4.34).
