Review of the clinical studies on post-COVID-19 syndrome
| Author/site/no. of participants | Severity of initial infection | Follow-up duration/mode of follow-up | Prevalence post-COVID-19 syndrome | General sequelae | Respiratory sequelae | CV sequalae | Neurological sequelae | GI sequelae | Impaired QoL |
| Carfi et al/Italy/n=1439 | O2 requirement: 53.8% NIV: 14.7% IMV: 4.9% ICU care: 12.6% | 60.3±13.6 days*/in-person | 87.4% | Fatigue: 53.1% Joint pain: 27.3% | Dyspnoea: 43.4% Cough: 15% | Chest pain: 21.7% | Anosmia/ageusia: 15% Headache: 10% | NR | Yes (44.1%) |
| Tenforde et al/ USA/n=27411 | NR | 2–3 weeks/telephone survey | 34% | Fatigue: 35% | Cough: 43% Dyspnoea: 29% | NR | NR | NR | NR |
| Liang et al/China/n=7612 | Mild: 91% Severe: 9% | 90 days/ In-person | NR | Fatigue: 60% Fever: 20% | Dyspnoea: 61% Cough: 60% Sputum: 43% | Chest tightness: 62% Palpitations: 62% | NR | Diarrhoea: 26% | NR |
| Arnold et al/ UK/n=11013 | Mild: 24.5% Moderate: 59.1% Severe: 16.3% | 8–12 weeks/in-person | 74% | Fatigue: 39% Myalgia: 22.7% Fever: 0.01% | Dyspnoea: 39% Cough: 11.8% | Chest pain: 12.7% | Insomnia: 24% Anosmia: 11.8% Headache: 1.8% | Diarrhoea: 0.01% | Yes |
| Garrigues et al/France/n=12014 | ICU: 20% | 3–4 months/telephone survey | NR | Fatigue: 55% | Dyspnoea: 41.7% Cough: 16.7% | Chest pain: 10.8% | Sleep disturbance: 30.8% Memory loss: 34.2% Attention disorder: 26.7% Anosmia/ageusia: 10.8%–13.3% | NR | Yes (21.5%) |
| Huang et al
/China/n=173315 | Admitted without O2 requirement: 25% O2 requirement: 68% HFNC/NIV: 6% ECMO/IMV: 1% | 6 months/in-person | 76% | Fatigue: 63% Joint pain: 9% Muscular pain: 2% Fever: 0.1% | Dyspnoea: 23% Sore throat: 4% | Palpitations: 9% Chest pain: 5% | Sleep disturbance: 26% Anosmia: 11% Aguesia: 7% Headache: 2% | Diarrhoea/vomiting: 5% | Yes |
| Xiong et al/China/n=53816 | Mild: 61.5% Severe: 33.5% Critical: 5% | 97 days†/in-person | 49.6% | Fatigue: 28.3% Sweating: 23.6% Arthralgia: 7.6% Chills: 4.6% Myalgia: 4.5% | Polypnoea: 21.4% Cough: 7.1% Throat pain: 3.2% Sputum: 3% | Chest pain: 12.3% Increased resting HR: 11.2% New onset HTN: 1.3% | Somnipathy: 17.7% Anxiety: 6.5% Depression: 4.3% Dysphoria: 1.7% | NR | NR |
| Carvalho-Schneider et al/France/ n=15017 | Mild/moderate: 77.3% Severe: 22.7% | 60 days/telephone survey | 66% | Fatigue: 40% Joint pain: 16.3% | Dyspnoea: 30% | Chest pain: 13.1% Palpitations: 10.9% | Anosmia/ageusia: 22.7% | Diarrhoea: 11.5% | NR |
| Halpin et al/ UK/ n=10018 | O2 requirement: 78% NIV: 30% IMV: 1% ICU care: 32% | 48 days†/telephone survey | NR | Fatigue: 64% | Dyspnoea: 40% | NR | PTSD: 31% Difficulty in concentration: 22% | Dysphagia: 8% | NR |
| Logue et al/USA/n=17719 | Asymptomatic: 6.2% Mild: 84.7% Moderate to severe: 9% | 169 days†/in-person | 30% | Fatigue: 13.6% | NR | NR | ‘Brain fog’: 2.3% | NR | 29.9% |
| Chopra et al/ USA/n=48820 | NR | 60 days/telephone survey | 32.6% | NR | Dyspnoea: 22.9% Cough: 15.4% | NR | Anosmia/ageusia: 13.1% | NR | NR |
| Moreno-Pérez et al/ Spain/n=27721 | Mild: 34.3% Moderate-Severe: 65.7% | 77 days†/in-person | 50.9% | Fatigue: 34.8% Myalgia: 19.6% | Dyspnoea: 11% Cough: 2.1% | NR | Anosmia/ageusia: 21.4% Headache: 5.4% | Diarrhoea: 10.5% | 66.9% |
| Pereira et al/UK/ n=3822 | Mild: 100% | 7–8 months/in-person | 55% | Fatigue: 57% | Dyspnoea: 24% | NR | Anosmia: 29% Difficulty in concentration: 24% | NR | NR |
| Taboada et al
/Spain/n=9123 | ICU: 100% | 6 months/In-person | 84% | Asthenia: 37% Myalgia: 37% Arthralgia: 29% | Dyspnoea: 57% Cough: 14.4% | Chest pain: 8.8% | Anosmia: 11% Insomnia: 30.8% | NR | Yes (67%) |
| Mahmud et al/Bangladesh/n=35524 | Mild: 62% Moderate: 26% Severe: 11% | 30 days/telephone survey | 46% | Fatigue: 33% Rash: 0.6% Myalgia: 0.6% | Cough: 8.5% Dyspnoea: 7% | Palpitation: 1.4% Bradycardia: 0.6% Chest pain: 0.8% New onset HTN: 0.6% | Headache: 3.4% Vertigo: 2.3% Insomnia: 2.3% Anosmia: 2% Memory disturbance: 0.6% | New onset dyspepsia: 1.4% | NR |
| Sonnweber et al/Austria/n=14525 | O2 requirement: 66% NIV: 3% IMV: 27% | 60–100 days/in-person | NR | Night sweats: 24% | Dyspnoea: 36% Cough: 17% | NR | Sleep disorders: 22% Hyposmia/anosmia: 19% | Diarrhoea: 9% | NR |
*Mean±SD.
†Median.
CV, cardiovascular; ECMO, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation; GI, gastrointestinal; HFNC, high-flow nasal cannula; HR, Heart Rate; HTN, hypertension; ICU, intensive care unit; IMV, invasive mechanical ventilation; NIV, non-invasive ventilation; NR, not reported; O2, oxygen; PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder; QoL, Quality of Life.