Khaberni - A new study led by Massachusetts General Brigham Hospital tracked more than 3,500 patients, monitoring long-term COVID symptoms over time, and found that 10.3% of them exhibited symptoms consistent with long-term COVID three months post-infection, while 81% continued to suffer from persistent or intermittent symptoms after a year.
According to "Medical Express," the participants who were first infected during the Omicron variant period (after December 1, 2021).
The participants completed a comprehensive symptom questionnaire after 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months, and 15 months from infection, to track changes over time.
Subsequently, the researchers identified patients with long-term COVID using a Long COVID Research Index, a symptom-based tool previously developed by researchers of Massachusetts General Hospital.
Different Pathways for Coronavirus Symptoms
The researchers identified 8 different long-term COVID pathways. These pathways included: severe persistent symptoms, severe intermittent symptoms, gradually improving symptoms, gradually worsening symptoms, and mild symptoms that only appeared after 15 months.
Patients who were hospitalized for a severe SARS-CoV-2 respiratory infection were more likely to suffer from severe and persistent long-term COVID symptoms.
The lead researcher, Dr. Tanayu Thaewitha, said: "The variations we identified will enable future studies to assess risk factors and biomarkers that may explain the differences in recovery duration among patients and will assist in identifying potential therapeutic targets."
