ABSTRACT
Introduction: Many individuals hospitalised with COVID-19 experience persistent symptoms following acute infection, known as long COVID or post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC). Objective(s): To conduct a de novo SLR and meta-analysis to identify PASC-associated symptoms in patients that required hospitalisation, and to determine frequency and temporal nature of PASC. Method(s): Searches of MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Library (from 2019-2021), WHO ICTRP and reference lists were performed. Articles were assessed by two reviewers against eligibility criteria and a risk-of-bias tool. Symptom data were synthesised by random-effects meta-analyses. Result(s): Of 6,942 records found, 52 studies with >100 patients were included in this analysis, ~70% of which were Europe-based. Most collected data from the first wave of the pandemic. PASC symptoms were analysed from 28 days to 1 year after hospital discharge. At 1-4 months post-acute COVID, the most frequent symptoms were fatigue (29%;95% CI: 20-41) and dyspnea (20%;13-29). Symptom burden persisted at 4-8 and 8-12 months (Fig 1). Conclusion(s): Lasting symptoms of COVID-19 can result in clinical and societal burden long after acute infection. Further research with longer follow-up is needed to better define the duration of PASC and whether factors such as vaccination, hospitalisation status and prior treatments have an impact on PASC.