By Aaron Miller
Many American adults who were hospitalized for COVID-19 experienced lingering symptoms, physical limitations and financial problems six months after being discharged, according to a new study.
Funded in part by the National Institutes of Health and published on Tuesday in the journal JAMA Network Open, the comprehensive research examined over 800 adults who were hospitalized for COVID-19 between August 2020 and July 2021.
It was conducted over a period of six months at a time by meticulous and highly competent researchers, dedicated to the overall goal of determining the long term effect of Covid-19 hospitalisation on the victims of the deadly virus. It took into account those who had pre-existing commobidities prior to contracting the virus, and those who did not.
The national US cohort study that included 825 adults discharged from 44 hospitals, 75.4% of COVID-19 survivors experienced cardiopulmonary problems at 6 months compared with 67.3% at month 1. Decreases were noted at 6 months in financial problems (from 66.1% to 56.4%) and functional limitations (55.3% to 47.3%).
The limitations of the research includes the fact many participants were largely recruited from teaching hospitals and therefore did not reflect a broader population. This limitation is Researchers admitted to being unable to separate consequences of COVID-19 from consequences of the care patients received, and also largely relied on self-reported symptoms and comparisons with baseline health, often ascertained at follow-up.
A notable number of number of participants reported new or worsened cardiopulmonary problems. It increased from 452 (67.3%) at month 1 to 482 (75.4%) at month 6 Among participants not reporting new problems at month 1, 60.0% reported new problems at month 6.
The most frequently reported problem at month 6 was chest trouble on exposure to odors or fumes (28.2%) followed by cough (27.2%). The proportion of participants with new or increased supplemental oxygen requirements decreased from 18.9% at month 1 to 11.5% at month , while the proportion with new positive airway pressure therapy increased from 5.0% to 12.7% .
There were slight differences in the proportions of respondents reporting symptoms at 6 months across initial level of care and baseline comorbidities, although these differences were not significantly different .
The study concluded that symptoms, disabilities, and financial problems remain highly prevalent—with some new problems—in the 6 months after COVID-19 hospitalization.
Participants included hospitalized English- or Spanish-speaking adults without severe prehospitalization disabilities or cognitive impairment .
Adults hospitalized for COVID-19 in 44 hospitals across the US formed a central part of the research, as enrolled patients were followed up at 1, 3, and 6 months.
Interviewers prioritized responses from patients but included proxy interviews with people in regular contact with the patient and knowledge of their health when necessary
Prolonged Symptoms And Disability
The effects of COVID-19 for many persisted after the acute phase and resulted in prolonged symptoms and disability.
Although, national studies using prospective enrolment of patients across diverse hospitals and regions are limited; researchers proceeded mainly using increased geographic and temporal representation.
Researchers found that at the six-month mark, more than 7 in 10 participants reported problems affecting the heart or lungs like coughing, rapid or irregular heartbeat and breathlessness. Over half of survivors reported fatigue after half a year.
Rates of heart and lung problems and fatigue increased from one month to six months after hospital discharge, highlighting that new symptoms can develop even after the initial COVID-19 illness is over.
“My clinic patients often want to know how soon they’ll get back to their usual health,” study author Andrew Admon, a pulmonologist at Lieutenant Colonel Charles S. Kettles VA Medical Center, said in a statement. “Based on these data, it seems that many people hospitalized for COVID-19 should expect symptoms to last for up to six months or even longer.”
Financial challenges associated with covid and physical limitations decreased from the one-month mark to six months after hospitalization but remained high, according to the study. More than 56% of study participants reported financial problems after half a year and 47% reported limitations in their daily activities.
The financial problems reported by study participants were significant, with nearly 35% reportedly using up all or most of their savings by month six and 20% saying they were unable to pay for necessities. More than 16% said they had been contacted by a collection agency as a result of their COVID-19 hospitalization. Financial problems were reported more often among minority populations.
“Collectively, these results suggest that many survivors of COVID-19 infection continue to experience symptoms for at least 6 months after hospitalization, recovery under current care is limited, and disparities may exist in some problems after COVID-19 hospitalization,” researchers wrote in the study.
The first study of health risks from repeat infections was published November suggested that the serious effects of long covid was more prevalent in patients who had been infected with coronavirus more than once.
Researchers from Washington University concluded that re-infected people are twice as likely to die and three times as likely to be hospitalized with COVID than those infected only once, regardless of their vaccination status. Al-Ali’s team reviewed data from nearly half a million COVID patients treated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) between March 2020 and April 2022.