Post-COVID-19 syndrome: nature of symptoms and associated factors

• DOI: 10.1007/s10389-022-01802-3
• Publication Date: 2023-01-03T14:04:06Z
• Authors: Nagla Mahmoud; Nashwa Radwan; Abdullah Alkattan; Mustafa Hassanien; Elfadil Elkajam; Sara Alqahtani; Alhan Haji; Amal Alfaifi; Amjad Alfaleh; Khaled Alabdulkareem
• Keywords: Anosmia; Cross-sectional study

Post-COVID-19 syndrome is defined as continuous symptoms related to SARS-CoV-2 infection, which can persist for several weeks or months. Previous studies identified risk factors associated with post-COVID-19 syndrome, including female sex, hypertension, and allergic respiratory diseases. This study aims to investigate the frequency of this syndrome among Arabic patients.A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to August 2022. The study included 520 Arabic patients with confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, who were asked about possible symptoms persisting for ≥28 days.Twenty-five percent (25%) of the included patients developed post-COVID-19 syndrome. The most common recorded symptoms were cough (32%), anosmia (32%), fatigue (28%), headache (19%), muscle pain (19%), and shortness of breath (17%). It was found that female sex, hospitalization due to initial COVID-19 infection, and the presence of chronic diseases were significant risk factors for developing post-COVID-19 syndrome.The study recorded post-COVID-19 syndrome among 25% of Arabic participants. Initial COVID-19 hospitalization, initial symptomatic COVID-19, and female sex were significant risk factors for developing post-COVID-19 syndrome.The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10389-022-01802-3.