1. Presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in COVID-19 survivors with post-COVID symptoms 2 years after hospitalization: The VIPER study.
- Author
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Fernández-de-Las-Peñas C, Torres-Macho J, Ruiz-Ruigómez M, Arrieta-Ortubay E, Rodríguez-Rebollo C, Akasbi-Moltalvo M, Pardo-Guimerá V, Ryan-Murua P, Lumbreras-Bermejo C, Pellicer-Valero OJ, Giordano R, Arendt-Nielsen L, and Franco-Moreno A
- Subjects
- Humans, Female, Male, Middle Aged, Adult, Aged, COVID-19 virology, COVID-19 complications, RNA, Viral blood, RNA, Viral genetics, SARS-CoV-2 genetics, Survivors, Nasopharynx virology, Hospitalization, Feces virology
- Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 VIrus PERsistence (VIPER) study investigated the presence of long-lasting SARS-CoV-2 RNA in plasma, stool, urine, and nasopharyngeal samples in COVID-19 survivors. The presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA reverse transcription polymerase chain reactions (RT-PCR) were analyzed within plasma, stool, urine, and nasopharyngeal swab samples in COVID-19 survivors with post-COVID symptoms and a comparison group of COVID-19 survivors without post-COVID symptoms matched by age, sex, body mass index and vaccination status. Participants self-reported the presence of any post-COVID symptom (defined as a symptom that started no later than 3 months after the initial infection). Fifty-seven (57.9% women, age: 51.1, standard deviation [SD]: 10.4 years) previously hospitalized COVID-19 survivors with post-COVID symptoms and 55 (56.4% women, age: 50.0, SD: 12.8 years) matched individuals who had a past SARS-CoV-2 infection without post-COVID symptoms were evaluated 27 (SD 7.5) and 26 (SD 8.7) months after hospital discharge, respectively. The presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA was identified in three nasopharyngeal samples of patients with post-COVID symptoms (5.2%) but not in plasma, stool, or urine samples. Thus, SARS-CoV-2 RNA was not identified in any sample of survivors without post-COVID symptoms. The most prevalent post-COVID symptoms consisted of fatigue (93%), dyspnea, and pain (both, 87.7%). This study did not find SARS-CoV-2 RNA in plasma, stool, or urine samples, 2 years after the infection. A prevalence of 5.2% of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in nasopharyngeal samples, suggesting a potential active or recent reinfection, was found in patients with post-COVID symptoms. These results do not support the association between SARS-CoV-2 RNA in plasma, stool, urine, or nasopharyngeal swab samples and post-COVID symptomatology in the recruited population., (© 2024 The Authors. Journal of Medical Virology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)
- Published
- 2024
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