Long term COVID-19 complications in inpatients and outpatients: a one-year follow up cohort study
Abstract Background As the coronavirus pandemic spreads, more and more people are infected with SARS-CoV-2. The short- and medium-term effects of the infection have been described, but the description of the long-term sequelae is lacking in the literature. Methods Patients healed from Covid-19 from February 2020 to May 2020 were considered for inclusion in this study, regardless of the severity of the disease during the acute phase. Eligible patients were consecutively contacted and a semi-structured interview was administered between February and March 2021 by trained medical staff. Results 303 patients were eligible and accepted to participate in the study and were enrolled. Most patients (81%) reported at least one symptom of those surveyed, and the most prevalent symptoms related to fatigue (52%), pain (48%) and sleep disorders (47%). Sensory alterations were present in 28% of surveyed patients, but in most of these cases (74% of those affected by sensory alterations or 20% of the overall sample) symptoms reported were either anosmia or dysgeusia. Higher prevalence was generally observed with increasing age, although the most relevant differences were observed when comparing young vs middle-aged adults. Conclusion At 12-months after acute infection, COVID-19 survivors were still suffering of symptoms identified at shorter follow-up including fatigue, pain and sleep disorders among the most frequent. A more severe impairment in the acute phase did not seem to predict more severe complications.