Pain, Anxiety Main Predictors of Decreased Quality of Life in Long COVID
A study found that of 110 patients with long COVID, over half reported decreased QOL due to pain, discomfort, anxiety, or depression.
Decreased quality of life (QOL) in patients with long COVID is mainly associated with pain, discomfort, anxiety, or depression and 3 or more persistent symptoms. The authors of the study, which was published in the journal Value in Health Regional Issues, said patients with the condition could benefit from neuropsychological rehabilitation programs.1
Pain, Anxiety Main Predictors of Decreased Quality of Life in Long COVID / Dzmitry - stock.adobe.com
In the United States, an estimated 17 million adults are living with long COVID, a number that has stayed relatively steady for the past year.2 According to a poll from KFF, 79% of adults with long COVID reported it limits their activity either a lot or a little. Despite the fact that 5% to 10% of adults in the country will likely continue to experience the condition at some point, research looking to improve its diagnosis and treatment is lagging.
READ MORE: Pfizer Vaccine Reduces Risk of Long COVID in Pediatric Patients
“The condition known as long COVID or postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection is characterized by a wide range of physical and mental health consequences that are present for 4 or more weeks after SARS-CoV-2 infection,” the authors wrote. “This has been observed even in those who had mild disease. Up to 56% of patients with long-COVID conditions have been reported as having a decreased QOL in the first 2 months after COVID.”
A team of investigators conducted a study to assess physical and psychosomatic manifestations of patients with long COVID and their association with decreased QOL or different times elapsed since the initial COVID-19 diagnosis. Data for the cross-sectional study was collected from patients who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 at a tertiary medical center in México City between April 2020 and February 2021 and was retrospectively analyzed.
The study included 179 patients who had a positive qualitative polymerase chain reaction SARS-CoV-2 test, complete medical records and a correct telephone number listed with the medical center. The patients participated in in-person interviews on current symptoms, an olfactory psychophysical assessment, and took the EQ-5D-5L health-related QOL assessment. Of the patients, 64% were female with a median age of 33 years. Persistent symptoms were present in 88% of the patients, with 42% having 1 symptom, 30% having 2, and 17% having 3 or more.
The study found that 110 of the patients reported experiencing symptoms such as fatigue, pain, discomfort, and cognitive alterations such as anxiety and depression. Over half of the patients reported decreased QOL and said it was primarily due to those symptoms. Additionally, having 3 or more persistent symptoms was also associated with decreased QOL.
In terms of types of pain, chronic musculoskeletal pain and clinical features that characterize fibromyalgia were present in 31% of patients. The only neuropsychiatric trait that was strongly associated with decreased QOL in the patients was anxiety and depression.
“Our findings are in concordance with other data reported of patients with post-COVID-19 alteration and enhanced the notion of a strong psychosomatic factors involved with long COVID-19 with a decrease in QOL of millions of patients reported worldwide,” the authors concluded. “Therefore, the patients with long COVID-19 might benefit from neuropsychological rehabilitation programs even several months after mild disease onset, although the effect of early interventions should be evaluated.”
READ MORE: COVID-19 Resource Center
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