The long-term symptoms experienced by some COVID-19 survivors, collectively referred to as “long COVID” or Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), pose a significant public health concern, affecting quality of life, earnings, and health care costs worldwide.
About the Study
In order to better understand the prevalence and severity of these symptoms, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) launched the Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER-Adult) initiative.
In one of the largest NIH studies ever funded, the research has identified 12 defining symptoms of long COVID.
The findings, which were published in JAMA, also include a new scoring system for long COVID, designed to help clinicians and researchers better define it and explore treatments for patients.
Methodology and Findings
The RECOVER-Adult study began in October 2021, aiming to harmonize data collection and build a robust definition of long COVID.
Over 9,500 individuals completed a survey developed in collaboration with clinicians and patient advocates, which was distributed across 85 hospitals, health centers, and community organizations in 33 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
The survey identified 12 key symptoms of long COVID, including post-exertional malaise, loss of or change in smell or taste, dizziness, brain fog, gastrointestinal symptoms, palpitations, and chronic cough.
The researchers found that while some symptoms like post-exertional malaise are common among most individuals with long COVID, others like loss of or change in smell and taste are less frequent but still vital for identifying long COVID.
A Scoring System for Long COVID
A simple algorithm developed as part of the study assesses these 12 symptoms to generate a “PASC score.”
However, the authors note that an individual with symptoms not included in the scoring system may still have long COVID and deserves high-quality care.
The study found that re-infections, infection with a pre-Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant, and lack of vaccination are associated with a higher frequency and severity of long COVID.
However, the authors stress the need for ongoing research in this field.
Future Directions
Future studies from the RECOVER Consortium will analyze risk factors for long COVID, including social determinants of health.
The researchers are also investigating how long COVID may manifest in children, adolescents, and people who were pregnant during SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Conclusion
“We now have a definition for long COVID where there hasn’t been one previously, and we hope the ability to identify long COVID will enhance clinical awareness of this condition,” said first author Tanayott Thaweethai, Ph.D., Co-investigator for the RECOVER DRC, Instructor at Harvard Medical School, and an Associate Director at MGH Biostatistics.
If you care about COVID, please read studies about Vitamin D deficiency linked to severe COVID-19, and how diets could help manage post-COVID syndrome.
For more information about COVID, please see recent studies about new evidence on rare blood clots after COVID-19 vaccination, and results showing zinc could help reduce COVID-19 infection risk.
The study was published in JAMA.
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