Post-Covid-19 Syndrome
Incidence and Prevalence
In mid-April 2022, a meta-analysis of 31 studies published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases revealed that 49 percent of Covid-19 survivors reported persistent symptoms four months after diagnosis. The true prevalence is still unknown.
Starting in June of 2022 , however, the percentage of people in the U.S. experiencing long Covid after a bout of infection began declining, according to data published by the CDC. At that time, more than 3 percent of U.S. adults reported having long Covid, while 7 percent reported ever having the condition.
Rates of long Covid appear to vary around the world. Some studies show that 30 percent of Americans who get Covid experience long Covid. But a massive study—of 4.5 million patients treated at U.S. Veterans Administration hospitals—tallies a rate of 7 percent. Even people with asymptomatic Covid can later manifest long Covid, as can those who previously tested negative on antigen or antibody tests.
It is not yet clear what the true prevalence of long Covid is because the symptoms are so diffuse and studies so far have employed differing criteria and time frames of observation. Estimates range from 10 percent to more than 60 percent of those who get acute Covid. When WHO offered a definition of the condition in December 2021, it reported that “most people who develop Covid-19 fully recover, but current evidence suggests approximately 10 percent to 20 percent of people experience a variety of mid- and long-term effects after they recover from their initial illness.”
Explore More About Long Covid
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