Inflammatory predictors of Post-COVID fatigue.

The biological mechanisms underlying objective and subjective fatigue in post-COVID syndrome remain unclear. This study investigates whether immune responses during the acute phase of SARS-CoV-2 infection predict fatigue dimensions 6-9 months post-infection. We analyzed serum immune markers from 54 hospitalized patients (mean age: 58.69 ± 10.90 yrs; female: 31 %) and assessed their association with chronic fatigue using general linear mixed models. Elevated levels of IL-1RA, IFNγ, TNFα, and monocyte percentage during acute infection predicted increased physical and total fatigue. Additionally, higher TNFα levels (r = -0.40, p = .019) correlated with reduced awareness of cognitive fatigue. These findings highlight the role of acute inflammation in the persistence of post-COVID fatigue.