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van Wijhe M, Fogh K, Ethelberg S, Karmark Iversen K, Nielsen H, Østergaard L, Andersen B, Bundgaard H, Jørgensen CS, Scharff BFSS, Ellermann-Eriksen S, Johansen IS, Fomsgaard A, Grove Krause T, Wiese L, Fischer TK, Mølbak K, Benfield T, Folke F, Lippert F, Ostrowski SR, Koch A, Erikstrup C, Vangsted AM, Sørensen AIV, Ullum H, Skov RL, Simonsen L, Nielsen SD. Persistent Symptoms and Sequelae After Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection Not Requiring Hospitalization: Results From Testing Denmark, a Danish Cross-sectional Survey. Open Forum Infect Dis 2022; 10:ofac679. [PMID: 36628054 PMCID: PMC9825266 DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofac679] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is associated with persistent symptoms ("long COVID"). We assessed the burden of long COVID among nonhospitalized adults with polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods In the fall of 2020, a cross-sectional survey was performed in the adult Danish general population. This included a self-administered point-of-care test for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, the Short Form Health Survey (SF-12), and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-associated symptom questions. Nonhospitalized respondents with a positive SARS-CoV-2 PCR test ≥12 weeks before the survey (cases) were matched (1:10) to seronegative controls on age, sex, and body mass index. Propensity score-weighted odds ratios (ORs) and ORs for risk factors were estimated for each health outcome. Results In total, 742 cases and 7420 controls were included. The attributable risk of at least 1 long-COVID symptom was 25.0 per 100 cases (95% confidence interval [CI], 22.2-27.4). Compared to controls, cases reported worse general health (OR, 5.9 [95% CI, 5.0-7.0]) and had higher odds for a broad range of symptoms, particularly loss of taste (OR, 11.8 [95% CI, 9.5-14.6]) and smell (OR, 11.2 [95% CI, 9.1-13.9]). Physical and Mental Component Summary scores were also significantly reduced with differences of -2.5 (95% CI, -3.1 to -1.8) and -2.0 (95% CI, -2.7 to -1.2), respectively. Female sex and severity of initial infection were major risk factors for long COVID. Conclusions Nonhospitalized SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive individuals had significantly reduced physical and mental health, and 1 in 4 reported persistence of at least 1 long-COVID symptom.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maarten van Wijhe
- Department of Science and Environment, Roskilde University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Kamille Fogh
- Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Herlev and Gentofte, Denmark,Department of Emergency Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, Herlev and Gentofte, Denmark,Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Steen Ethelberg
- Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Kasper Karmark Iversen
- Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Herlev and Gentofte, Denmark,Department of Emergency Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, Herlev and Gentofte, Denmark,Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Henrik Nielsen
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark,Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Lars Østergaard
- Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Berit Andersen
- Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,University Research Clinic for Cancer Screening, Randers Regional Hospital, Randers, Denmark
| | - Henning Bundgaard
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Denmark
| | | | - Bibi F SS Scharff
- Department of Clinical Immunology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Denmark
| | - Svend Ellermann-Eriksen
- Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Clinical Microbiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Isik S Johansen
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark,Department of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | | | | | - Lothar Wiese
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Zealand University Hospital, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Thea K Fischer
- Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Clinical Research, North Zealand Hospital, Hillerød, Denmark
| | - Kåre Mølbak
- Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Thomas Benfield
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital, Amager and Hvidovre, Hvidovre, Denmark
| | - Fredrik Folke
- Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Herlev and Gentofte, Denmark,Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Copenhagen Emergency Medical Services, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Freddy Lippert
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Copenhagen Emergency Medical Services, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Sisse R Ostrowski
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Clinical Immunology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Denmark
| | - Anders Koch
- Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark,Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Denmark
| | - Christian Erikstrup
- Department of Clinical Immunology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | | | | | | | | | - Lone Simonsen
- Department of Science and Environment, Roskilde University, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Susanne Dam Nielsen
- Correspondence: Susanne Dam Nielsen, MD, DMSc, Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark ()
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