. 2025 Apr 17;3(1):e000269.

doi: 10.1136/bmjph-2023-000269. eCollection 2025.

Global prevalence of long COVID and its most common symptoms among healthcare workers: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Amani Al-Oraibi^{1

2

3}, Katherine Woolf⁴, Jatin Naidu⁵, Laura B Nellums⁶, Daniel Pan^{7

8

9

10}, Shirley Sze^{3

11}, Carolyn Tarrant¹², Christopher A Martin^{3

7

8}, Mayuri Gogoi^{3

7}, Joshua Nazareth^{3

7

8}, Pip Divall¹³, Brendan Dempsey¹⁴, Danielle Lamb¹⁴, Manish Pareek^{3

7

10}

Affiliations

¹ Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
² Lifespan and Population Health, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.
³ Development Centre for Population Health, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
⁴ Research Department of Medical Education, University College London, London, UK.
⁵ University College London Medical School, London, UK.
⁶ The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
⁷ Department of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
⁸ Department of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
⁹ Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford Big Data Institute, Oxford, UK.
¹⁰ NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research Centre, Leicester, UK.
¹¹ Cardiovascular Research Centre, Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, UK.
¹² Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
¹³ University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
¹⁴ Department of Applied Health Research, University College London, London, UK.

PMID: 40260126
PMCID: PMC12010341
DOI: 10.1136/bmjph-2023-000269

Global prevalence of long COVID and its most common symptoms among healthcare workers: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Amani Al-Oraibi et al. BMJ Public Health. 2025.

. 2025 Apr 17;3(1):e000269.

doi: 10.1136/bmjph-2023-000269. eCollection 2025.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
² Lifespan and Population Health, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.
³ Development Centre for Population Health, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
⁴ Research Department of Medical Education, University College London, London, UK.
⁵ University College London Medical School, London, UK.
⁶ The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
⁷ Department of Respiratory Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
⁸ Department of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
⁹ Li Ka Shing Centre for Health Information and Discovery, University of Oxford Big Data Institute, Oxford, UK.
¹⁰ NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research Centre, Leicester, UK.
¹¹ Cardiovascular Research Centre, Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, UK.
¹² Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
¹³ University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK.
¹⁴ Department of Applied Health Research, University College London, London, UK.

PMID: 40260126
PMCID: PMC12010341
DOI: 10.1136/bmjph-2023-000269

Abstract

Objectives: Long COVID, a condition where symptoms persist after the acute phase of COVID-19, is a significant concern for healthcare workers (HCWs) due to their higher risk of infection. However, there is limited knowledge regarding the prevalence, symptoms and clustering of long COVID in HCWs. We aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence and identify the most common symptoms of long COVID among HCWs who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus globally, and investigate any differences by geographical region and other factors.

Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis (PROSPERO CRD42022312781).

Data sources: We searched MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO and the grey literature from 31 December 2019 until 18 February 2022.

Eligibility criteria: We included studies reporting primary data on long COVID prevalence and symptoms in adult HCWs who had SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Data extraction and synthesis: Methodological quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist. Meta-analysis was performed for prevalence data of long COVID following SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Results: Out of 5737 articles, 28 met the inclusion criteria, with a combined sample size of 6 481 HCWs. 15 articles scored equal to or above the median score for methodological quality. The pooled prevalence of long COVID among HCWs who had SARS-CoV-2 infection was 40% (95% CI: 29% to 51%, I²: 97.2%; 12 studies), with a mean follow-up period of 22 weeks. The most prevalent symptoms reported were fatigue (35%), neurologic symptoms (25%), loss/decrease of smell and/or taste (25%), myalgia (22%) and shortness of breath (19%).

Conclusion: This review highlights the substantial burden of long COVID among HCWs worldwide. However, limitations in data quality and inconsistent definitions of long COVID impact the generalisability of these findings. To improve future interventions, we recommend enhanced cohort study designs for better characterisation of long COVID prevalence and symptoms in HCWs.

Keywords: COVID-19; Public Health; SARS-CoV-2.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

MP reports grants and personal fees from Gilead Sciences and personal fees from QIAGEN, outside the submitted work. DL is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research ARC North Thames. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the National Institute for Health and Care Research or the Department of Health and Social Care.

Figures

**Figure 1. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses flow diagram of studies’ selection.**

**Figure 2. Forest plot showing point estimates with 95% CIs for the pooled prevalence of long COVID symptoms among COVID-19 HCWs survivors. HCWS, healthcare workers.**

**Figure 3. Forest plot showing point estimates with 95% CIs for prevalence of the five most common long COVID symptoms among COVID-19 HCWs survivors. HCWs, healthcare workers.**

See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

1. World Health Organization (WHO) Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) 2023. [06-Jan-2023]. https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019?adgroups... Available. Accessed.
1. World Health Organization (WHO) Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): post COVID-19 condition. 2021. [06-Jun-2023]. https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/coronavirus-dis... Available. Accessed.
1. NICE Overview | COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing the long-term effects of COVID-19 | guidance - PubMed
1. Davis HE, Assaf GS, McCorkell L, et al. Characterizing long COVID in an international cohort: 7 months of symptoms and their impact. EClinicalMedicine. 2021;38:101019. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2021.101019. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. NICE COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing the longterm effects of COVID-19. 2022. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng188/resources/c Available.

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Global prevalence of long COVID and its most common symptoms among healthcare workers: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Affiliations

Global prevalence of long COVID and its most common symptoms among healthcare workers: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

Figures

References

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