tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Open Forum Infect Dis
. 2025 Mar 27;12(5)
faf142.
doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofaf142. eCollection 2025 May. Trajectories of Health-Related Quality of Life 2 Years After Mild/Moderate Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection in the Pre-Omicron Era
Brendan P Jacka[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Qinglu L Cheng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Benjamin Schiavone[SUP] 2 [/SUP], David R Darley[SUP] 2 3 [/SUP], Anthony D Kelleher[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Gregory J Dore[SUP] 1 5 [/SUP], Gail V Matthews[SUP] 1 5 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Background: Individuals with postacute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), or long COVID, experience substantial burden of illness many months after initial infection. Few studies have comprehensively and longitudinally assessed health outcomes for people with long COVID following mild/moderate infection. We applied the Wilson-Cleary model of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) to describe the impact of long COVID on multiple health dimensions up to 24 months following mild/moderate COVID-19.
Methods: Participants within the ADAPT post-COVID study (N = 172, 86% mild/moderate infection) completed structured patient-reported outcome measures at 4, 8, 12, 18, and 24 months postinfection. Following the Wilson-Cleary model, questionnaires assessed symptoms (anxiety/depression, chronic fatigue, breathlessness), return to pre-COVID-19 functioning, perceived health status (EuroQol Visual Analogue Scale), and wellbeing (EuroQol EQ-5D-5L, Personal Wellbeing Index). Temporal trends were assessed using general estimating equations and ordinal logistic regression, including time × long COVID interactions.
Results: Thirty-seven percent of participants were diagnosed with long COVID (≥1 new/persisting symptoms of chest pain, breathlessness, or fatigue/malaise at least 12 weeks after infection). Long COVID was associated with poorer health outcomes across all domains at first assessment. Over 2 years, participants with long COVID reported improvement in return to pre-COVID-19 work and Somatic and Psychological Health Report chronic fatigue but sustained impairment was observed in all other health domains, compared to participants recovered from COVID-19.
Conclusions: Substantial long-term impairment in various health domains were observed for individuals with long COVID following mild/moderate initial infection, with little improvement over time in most. Multimodal interventions must address impairment in multiple domains of HRQOL in individuals with long COVID.
Keywords: long COVID; patient-reported outcome measures; postacute sequelae of COVID-19; recovery; wellbeing.
. 2025 Mar 27;12(5)
faf142.doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofaf142. eCollection 2025 May. Trajectories of Health-Related Quality of Life 2 Years After Mild/Moderate Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection in the Pre-Omicron Era
Brendan P Jacka[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Qinglu L Cheng[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Benjamin Schiavone[SUP] 2 [/SUP], David R Darley[SUP] 2 3 [/SUP], Anthony D Kelleher[SUP] 1 4 [/SUP], Gregory J Dore[SUP] 1 5 [/SUP], Gail V Matthews[SUP] 1 5 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 40406371
- PMCID: PMC12096008
- DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofaf142
Background: Individuals with postacute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), or long COVID, experience substantial burden of illness many months after initial infection. Few studies have comprehensively and longitudinally assessed health outcomes for people with long COVID following mild/moderate infection. We applied the Wilson-Cleary model of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) to describe the impact of long COVID on multiple health dimensions up to 24 months following mild/moderate COVID-19.
Methods: Participants within the ADAPT post-COVID study (N = 172, 86% mild/moderate infection) completed structured patient-reported outcome measures at 4, 8, 12, 18, and 24 months postinfection. Following the Wilson-Cleary model, questionnaires assessed symptoms (anxiety/depression, chronic fatigue, breathlessness), return to pre-COVID-19 functioning, perceived health status (EuroQol Visual Analogue Scale), and wellbeing (EuroQol EQ-5D-5L, Personal Wellbeing Index). Temporal trends were assessed using general estimating equations and ordinal logistic regression, including time × long COVID interactions.
Results: Thirty-seven percent of participants were diagnosed with long COVID (≥1 new/persisting symptoms of chest pain, breathlessness, or fatigue/malaise at least 12 weeks after infection). Long COVID was associated with poorer health outcomes across all domains at first assessment. Over 2 years, participants with long COVID reported improvement in return to pre-COVID-19 work and Somatic and Psychological Health Report chronic fatigue but sustained impairment was observed in all other health domains, compared to participants recovered from COVID-19.
Conclusions: Substantial long-term impairment in various health domains were observed for individuals with long COVID following mild/moderate initial infection, with little improvement over time in most. Multimodal interventions must address impairment in multiple domains of HRQOL in individuals with long COVID.
Keywords: long COVID; patient-reported outcome measures; postacute sequelae of COVID-19; recovery; wellbeing.