tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
JAMA Netw Open
. 2024 Apr 1;7(4):e245611.
doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.5611. Long-Term Symptoms Associated With SARS-CoV-2 Infection Among Blood Donors
Melisa M Shah[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Bryan R Spencer[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Jade James-Gist[SUP] 1 [/SUP], James M Haynes[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Leora R Feldstein[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Susan L Stramer[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Jefferson M Jones[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sharon H Saydah[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Importance: Long-term symptoms, lasting more than 4 consecutive weeks after acute COVID-19 disease, are an important consequence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Many prior studies have lacked a non-SARS-CoV-2-infected control population to distinguish background prevalence of symptoms from the direct impact of COVID-19 disease.
Objective: To examine the prevalence of long-term physical and mental health symptoms associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection in a large population of blood donors based on self-report and serologic test results.
Design, setting, and participants: This cross-sectional study included American Red Cross blood donors (aged ≥18 years) who were surveyed between February 22 and April 21, 2022, about new long-term symptoms arising after March 2020 and their SARS-CoV-2 infection status. All participants underwent at least 1 serologic test for antinucleocapsid antibodies between June 15, 2020, and December 31, 2021.
Exposures: SARS-CoV-2 infection as defined by a self-reported, confirmed acute infection or antinucleocapsid antibody positivity.
Main outcomes and measures: New long-term symptoms since March 2020, including 5 symptom categories (neurologic, gastrointestinal, respiratory and cardiac, mental health, and other).
Results: Among 818 361 individuals who received the survey, 272 965 (33.4%) responded, with 238 828 meeting the inclusion criteria (138 576 [58.0%] female; median [IQR] age, 59.0 [47.0-67.0] years). Of the 83 015 individuals with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection, 43.3% reported new long-term symptoms compared with 22.1% of those without a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection. After controlling for age, sex, race and ethnicity, and number of underlying conditions, those with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection had an increased odds of new long-term symptoms compared with those without (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 2.55; 95% CI, 2.51-2.61). Female sex and a history of chronic conditions were associated with new long-term symptoms. Long-term symptoms in the other category (AOR, 4.14; 95% CI, 4.03-4.25), which included changes in taste or smell, and the respiratory and cardiac symptom categories (AOR, 3.21; 95% CI, 3.12-3.31) were most associated with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection. Mental health long-term symptoms were also associated with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection (AOR, 1.05; 95%, CI, 1.02-1.08).
Conclusions and relevance: This study's findings suggest that long-term symptoms lasting more than 4 weeks are common in the adult population, but there is a significantly higher prevalence among those with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Continued efforts to define and track long-term sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 using a control group without infection and serologic information to include those who had asymptomatic or unidentified infections are needed.
. 2024 Apr 1;7(4):e245611.
doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.5611. Long-Term Symptoms Associated With SARS-CoV-2 Infection Among Blood Donors
Melisa M Shah[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Bryan R Spencer[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Jade James-Gist[SUP] 1 [/SUP], James M Haynes[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Leora R Feldstein[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Susan L Stramer[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Jefferson M Jones[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sharon H Saydah[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 38587842
- PMCID: PMC11002700
- DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.5611
Importance: Long-term symptoms, lasting more than 4 consecutive weeks after acute COVID-19 disease, are an important consequence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Many prior studies have lacked a non-SARS-CoV-2-infected control population to distinguish background prevalence of symptoms from the direct impact of COVID-19 disease.
Objective: To examine the prevalence of long-term physical and mental health symptoms associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection in a large population of blood donors based on self-report and serologic test results.
Design, setting, and participants: This cross-sectional study included American Red Cross blood donors (aged ≥18 years) who were surveyed between February 22 and April 21, 2022, about new long-term symptoms arising after March 2020 and their SARS-CoV-2 infection status. All participants underwent at least 1 serologic test for antinucleocapsid antibodies between June 15, 2020, and December 31, 2021.
Exposures: SARS-CoV-2 infection as defined by a self-reported, confirmed acute infection or antinucleocapsid antibody positivity.
Main outcomes and measures: New long-term symptoms since March 2020, including 5 symptom categories (neurologic, gastrointestinal, respiratory and cardiac, mental health, and other).
Results: Among 818 361 individuals who received the survey, 272 965 (33.4%) responded, with 238 828 meeting the inclusion criteria (138 576 [58.0%] female; median [IQR] age, 59.0 [47.0-67.0] years). Of the 83 015 individuals with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection, 43.3% reported new long-term symptoms compared with 22.1% of those without a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection. After controlling for age, sex, race and ethnicity, and number of underlying conditions, those with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection had an increased odds of new long-term symptoms compared with those without (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 2.55; 95% CI, 2.51-2.61). Female sex and a history of chronic conditions were associated with new long-term symptoms. Long-term symptoms in the other category (AOR, 4.14; 95% CI, 4.03-4.25), which included changes in taste or smell, and the respiratory and cardiac symptom categories (AOR, 3.21; 95% CI, 3.12-3.31) were most associated with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection. Mental health long-term symptoms were also associated with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection (AOR, 1.05; 95%, CI, 1.02-1.08).
Conclusions and relevance: This study's findings suggest that long-term symptoms lasting more than 4 weeks are common in the adult population, but there is a significantly higher prevalence among those with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Continued efforts to define and track long-term sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 using a control group without infection and serologic information to include those who had asymptomatic or unidentified infections are needed.