1. Acute and persistent symptoms in non-hospitalized PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients
- Author
-
Claus Henrik Nielsen, Karina Banasik, Frank Geller, Søren Brunak, David Westergaard, Morten Tulstrup, Bjarke Feenstra, Ioanna Nissen, Susanne Dam Nielsen, Kirsten Groenbaek, Lisa Cantwell, Sofie Bliddal, Ulla Feldt-Rasmussen, Ole Birger Pedersen, Niels Tommerup, Henrik Ullum, Sisse R. Ostrowski, and Michael Schwinn
- Subjects
medicine.medical_specialty ,Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ,Hospitalized patients ,business.industry ,Female sex ,Odds ratio ,Asymptomatic ,Disease Presentation ,Internal medicine ,medicine ,medicine.symptom ,Civil registration ,business ,Cohort study - Abstract
BackgroundReports of persistent symptoms after hospitalization with COVID-19 have raised concern of a “long COVID” syndrome. This study aimed at characterizing acute and persistent symptoms in non- hospitalized patients with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) confirmed COVID-19.MethodsCohort study of 445 non-hospitalized participants identified via the Danish Civil Registration System with a SARS-CoV-2-positive PCR-test and available biobank samples for genetic analyses. Participants received a digital questionnaire on demographics and COVID-19-related symptoms. Persistent symptoms: symptoms >four weeks (in sensitivity analyses >12 weeks).Results445 participants were included, of whom 34% were asymptomatic. Most common acute symptoms were fatigue, headache, and sneezing, while fatigue and reduced smell and taste were reported as most severe. Persistent symptoms, most commonly fatigue and memory and concentration difficulties, were reported by 36% of 198 symptomatic participants with follow-up >four weeks. Risk factors for persistent symptoms included female sex (women 44% vs. men 24%, odds ratio 2.7, 95%CI:1.4-5.1, p=0.003) and BMI (odds ratio 1.1, 95%CI:1.0-1.2, p=0.001).ConclusionAmong non-hospitalized PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients one third were asymptomatic while one third of symptomatic participants had persistent symptoms illustrating the heterogeneity of disease presentation. These findings should be considered in future health care planning and policy making related to COVID-19.
- Published
- 2021