Prevalence and Predictors of Long Covid in a Cohort of Brazilian Adults 12 Months After Acute Infection: A Cross-Sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION

Since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, various reports have emerged regarding persistent symptoms associated with Covid-19. Nevertheless, there is insufficient data on the persistence of symptoms over time. This study sought to estimate the prevalence of persistent symptoms 12 months after Covid-19 infection and identify predictors of long Covid in adults living in the State of Paraná, southern Brazil, according to the level of severity of Covid-19 infection.

METHOD: An observational and cross-sectional survey was conducted with Brazilian adults diagnosed with Covid-19, as assessed from data available in two official Covid-19 notification databases in Brazil, using telephone interviews. Descriptive statistics, tests of associations and simple and multiple binary logistic regression analysis were used to identify predictors of long Covid.

RESULTS

In total, 1033 adults participated in the study. The overall prevalence of long Covid was 60.3% (n = 623). Prevalence was higher in women (67.7%), people aged between 50 and 59 years (65.8%) and in individuals who received treatment in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) during the acute phase of Covid-19 infection (74.4%, n = 241). The risk factors associated with a greater chance of developing long Covid were: female (OR 2.38; 95% CI 1.55; 3.66), living in the Brazilian northwest health macro-region (OR 2.20; 95% CI 1.21; 4.00), presenting multimorbidity (OR 1.86; 95% CI 1.06; 3.28), having an average of six symptoms in the acute phase of Covid-19 (OR 1.22; 95% CI 1.17; 1.28) and having received treatment in an ICU (OR 4.86; 95% CI 2.83; 8.35) and inpatient ward (OR 2.45; 95% CI 1.47; 4.09).

CONCLUSIONS

The results highlight the high prevalence of long Covid and support the formulation of health policies capable of minimising the consequences on the population, on the services offered by professionals and on health systems.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: The study topic's importance was based on the patients' experiences in the author's previous research and the need to develop patient-centred care.