THE LONG HAUL: A FOLLOW UP STUDY OF PATIENTS DIAGNOSED WITH COVID-19 ONE YEAR AGO AT AN URBAN MEDICAL CENTER IN NEW JERSEY

Abstract

TOPIC: Chest Infections TYPE: Original Investigations PURPOSE: Many patients diagnosed with COVID-19 develop a post-viral syndrome commonly known as Long COVID-19. Long COVID is described as when a patient experiences persistent symptoms for more than 12 weeks after their initial infection. Recent studies have shown that patients may experience long covid for as many as 6 months after initial infection. We conducted a follow up study on patients diagnosed with COVID-19 one year ago at one of the worst affected tertiary hospitals in the state of New Jersey. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study consisting of patients with a confirmed positive COVID-19 test by PCR in the months of March and April of 2020 in the St. Joseph’s University Hospital network. Individuals who were either admitted to the hospital or tested positive in the outpatient setting with Sars- CoV2 were included in the study. Patients under 18 years of age or those with cognitive impairment or inability to complete the survey were excluded. Informed consent was taken over the telephone. The participants completed a comprehensive questionnaire including sociodemographic information and a review of systems to evaluate for persistent symptoms they have experienced over the past year directly due to COVID-19. All patient identifying information was de-identified in compliance with HIPAA rules and regulations. RESULTS: There were 91 inpatients ( 91/173 [52.6%]) and 82 outpatients (82/173 [47.4%]) with a mean age of 51.5. The most common ethnicities were Hispanic (80/173 [46.24%]) African American (48/173 [27.74%]), Caucasian (32/173 [18.49%]) and the most common comorbidities were hypertension (68/173 [39.5%]), obesity (45/173 [26.9%]) and diabetes (33/173 [19.1%]). There were 91 inpatients ( 91/173 [52.6%]) and 82 outpatients (82/173 [47.4%]), of which 85 were male (85/173 [49.42%]). Overall 83 patients (47.9%) still experienced at least one persistent symptom after initial infection. The most commonly reported symptoms were shortness of breath (44/173 [25.4%]), fatigue (43/173 [21%]), anxiety (36/173 [20.8%]), difficulty focusing/brain fog (32/173 [18.5%]), body aches (32/173 [18.5%]), headaches (29/173 [16.8%]), memory loss (25/173 [14.5%]), cough (23/173 [13.3%]), depression (22/173 [12.7%]), chest pain (19/173 [11%]), palpitations (15/173 [8.7%]), lightheadedness (15/173 [8.7%]), runny nose (12/173 [6.9%]) and loss of taste (11/173 [6.4%]). CONCLUSIONS: In our patient population nearly half of all patients (47.9%) still experienced at least one symptom 12 months after their initial infection. In both patient populations the most common persistent symptoms were shortness of breath, fatigue, anxiety and difficulty focusing/brain fog. The risk factors and pathophysiology of long covid remain unknown, highlighting the importance of further research into the topics. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Nearly half of our patient population still experienced at least one symptom from their COVID-19 infection after one year. This further suggests that infection with COVID-19 may carry a risk of developing long term and possibly permanent sequelae from the virus. As more patients continue to be infected with COVID-19 and subsequently develop long covid, a public health crisis may be looming in the future. This highlights the need for continued public education on COVID-19 as well as the critical importance of widespread vaccination across the world to end the pandemic. DISCLOSURES: No relevant relationships by Polina Aron, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Hamdallah Ashkar, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Sohail Chaudhry, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Arslan Chaudhry, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Beenish Faheem, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Alisa Farokhian, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by George Horani, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Humberto Jimenez, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Christina Kmiecik, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Patrick Michael, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Christopher Millet, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Spandana Narvaneni, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Sherif Roman, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Fady Shafeek, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Yezin Shamoon, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Jin Suh, source=Web Response