As Europe prepares for a difficult winter, not only due to adjustments in energy consumption and the appearance of viruses typical of the colder months, such as flu or colds, but also the threat of a new wave of pandemic of Covid is showing more and more than possible.
Now, in addition, a study published in “Nature Communications” shows that almost half of the people who have suffered from Covid still do not fully recover more than 18 months after having suffered the SARS-CoV-2 infection.
This is data from the Long-CISS study conducted in Scotland and led by the University of Glasgow, one of the largest of its kind to date and launched in May 2021 to understand the long-term impact of Covid-19.
Their conclusions are clear: almost half of the people who had Covid-19 still suffer symptoms up to 18 months after being infected.
Specifically, the report shows that one in 20 people have not recovered from the virus and that 42% of infected people reported feeling only partially recovered within six to 18 months.
The study also found that the impact for people with persistent Covid is very important, and includes a variety of symptoms that affect their daily lives and reduce their quality of life.
The research also reveals that persistent Covid was more likely in cases of severe infection requiring hospitalization. Its most common symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain, palpitations, and confusion or “brain fog.”
And that those with pre-existing physical and mental health problems, such as respiratory illnesses and depression, were also more likely to suffer from symptoms of the virus for a longer period of time.
The study found that while recovery status remained constant during the follow-up period for most participants, 13% of people reported improvement over time and 11% reported some type of deterioration.
Early results, however, reveal that those with asymptomatic infection had no long-term impact and that people who had been vaccinated before being infected with the coronavirus seemed to have protection against some long-term symptoms.
The researchers analyzed data from 33,281 people infected with coronavirus combined with that from 62,957 who had never been infected.
Both groups were followed for 6, 12 and 18 months.
Using health data records from the UK’s National Institutes of Health (NHS), the researchers contacted via SMS all Scottish adults who tested positive for Covid, as well as a sample of people who tested negative.
People were then asked to answer questions about their health, both before and after Covid-19, to determine if the virus had had lasting effects on their lives.
Persistent Covid was more likely in cases of severe infection requiring hospitalization
Although most people recover quickly and completely after infection, some people develop a wide variety of long-term problems. Jill Pella professor of public health at the University of Glasgow, who is leading the study.
“Our study adds to our understanding of persistent Covid in the general population, not just in those people who need to be admitted to hospital. By comparing symptoms to those who were not infected, we were able to distinguish between health problems that are due to Covid-19 and those that would have occurred anyway.”