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. 2021 Nov 15;10(22):5298.
doi: 10.3390/jcm10225298.

Long-Term Symptoms among Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients 48 Weeks after Discharge-A Prospective Cohort Study

Martin Mølhave  1 , Steffen Leth  1   2 , Jesper Damsgaard Gunst  1 , Søren Jensen-Fangel  1 , Lars Østergaard  1 , Christian Wejse  1 , Jane Agergaard  1
Affiliations

Long-Term Symptoms among Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients 48 Weeks after Discharge-A Prospective Cohort Study

Martin Mølhave et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Follow-up studies of COVID-19 survivors have been performed to characterize persistence of long-term symptoms, but data are scarce on one year of follow-up. This study provides data from 48 weeks of follow-up after discharge. All patients discharged from the Department of Infectious Diseases at Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark between 1 March and 1 July 2020 were followed for 48 weeks. In total, 45 of 66 eligible patients were interviewed after 48 weeks. The median age was 57 (IQR 51-70) years, the majority were female (53%) and Caucasian (87%). Median BMI was 28.1 (IQR 24.8-32.6) kg/m2. One or more comorbidities were registered among 62% of the patients. In total, 39 out of 45 (87%) interviewed patients reported persistence of at least one symptom 48 weeks after hospitalization with COVID-19. Most frequently reported symptoms were fatigue, dyspnea, and concentration difficulties. This study provides new long-term data following COVID-19, contributing to the accumulating data of COVID-19 sequelae. Many patients suffer long-term sequelae and further research is urgently needed to gain further knowledge of the duration and therapeutic options.

Keywords: COVID-19; hospitalized patients; long-term complications; long-term symptoms; prospective studies.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure A1
Figure A1
Interview guide.
Figure A1
Figure A1
Interview guide.
Figure A1
Figure A1
Interview guide.
Figure A2
Figure A2
Flowchart of the cohort.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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