Long COVID Patients Report Symptoms 15 Months Later

By Jonathan Springston, Editor, Relias Media

Patients with COVID-19 who never were hospitalized reported experiencing various side effects an average of 15 months after symptom onset, according to the results of a small study conducted by researchers at Northwestern Medicine.

Between May and November 2020, patients presented to the Northwestern Medicine Neuro COVID-19 Clinic with SARS-CoV-2 symptom complaints, such as cough and sore throat, but they never were admitted to the hospital. Researchers narrowed this cohort to 100 patients (the first 50 consecutive people who tested positive for COVID-19, and the first 50 consecutive people who tested negative).

Investigators followed up with this cohort via phone questionnaires to track their status since their initial 2020 visits (n = 52; mean age = 42.8 years; 73% women; 77% vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2). There were many reports of symptom complaints for 11 to 18 months after disease onset (average = 14.8 months).

Specifically, there were persistent complaints of numbness/tingling (69% of patients at first visit vs. 65% of patients at the follow-up survey), headache (67% vs. 54%), dizziness (50% vs. 54%), blurred vision (34% vs. 44%), tinnitus (33% vs. 42%), and fatigue (87% vs. 81%). Other complaints included gastrointestinal distress as well as blood pressure and heart rate variations, all three of which were more common complaints at the follow-up survey compared to the initial evaluation.

Conversely, survey follow-up participants reported overall better recovery, cognitive function, and fatigue compared to their initial visit. Even many of those who lost taste or smell reported a return of those senses.

“We were surprised by the persistence of most of the debilitating neurologic symptoms of our patients, and by the late appearance of symptoms that suggest dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system,” said Igor Koralnik, MD, who oversees the Northwestern Medicine Neuro COVID-19 Clinic. “As new variants emerge and the number of patients impacted by long COVID rises, we’re now focusing our research on understanding the root cause of long COVID. We’re also devising interventions to improve the management of those patients and find the best treatment options for them.”

The Northwestern clinic reported staff have seen more than 1,400 “long-hauler” COVID-19 patients from all over the United States. Last year, Koralnik and colleagues reported 85% of these patients experience four or more neurologic symptoms, which can affect quality of life and cognition.

For more on this and related subjects, be sure to read the latest issues of Hospital Infection Control & Prevention, Hospital Employee Health, and Infectious Disease Alert.