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Characteristics and predictors of acute and chronic post-COVID syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Iqbal, Fahad M; Lam, Kyle; Sounderajah, Viknesh; Clarke, Jonathan M; Ashrafian, Hutan; Darzi, Ara.
  • Iqbal FM; Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, St Mary's Hospital, London W2 1NY, UK.
  • Lam K; Institute of Global Health Innovation, Faculty Building, South Kensington Campus, Kensington SW7 2AZ, London, UK.
  • Sounderajah V; Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, St Mary's Hospital, London W2 1NY, UK.
  • Clarke JM; Institute of Global Health Innovation, Faculty Building, South Kensington Campus, Kensington SW7 2AZ, London, UK.
  • Ashrafian H; Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, St Mary's Hospital, London W2 1NY, UK.
  • Darzi A; Institute of Global Health Innovation, Faculty Building, South Kensington Campus, Kensington SW7 2AZ, London, UK.
EClinicalMedicine ; 36: 100899, 2021 Jun.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1240306
ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

A significant proportion of individuals experience lingering and debilitating symptoms following acute COVID-19 infection. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) have coined the persistent cluster of symptoms as post-COVID syndrome. This has been further sub-categorised into acute post-COVID syndrome for symptoms persisting three weeks beyond initial infection and chronic post-COVID syndrome for symptoms persisting beyond twelve weeks. The aim of this review was to detail the prevalence of clinical features and identify potential predictors for acute and chronic post-COVID syndrome.

METHODS:

A systematic literature search, with no language restrictions, was performed to identify studies detailing characteristics and outcomes related to survivorship of post-COVID syndrome. The last search was performed on 6 March 2021 and all pre-dating published articles included. A means of proportion meta-analysis was performed to quantify characteristics of acute and chronic post-COVID syndrome. Study quality was assessed with a specific risk of bias tool. PROSPERO Registration CRD42020222855.

FINDINGS:

A total of 43 studies met the eligibility criteria; of which, 38 allowed for meta-analysis. Fatigue and dyspnoea were the most prevalent symptoms in acute post-COVID (0·37 and 0·35) and fatigue and sleep disturbance in chronic post-COVID syndrome (0·48 and 0·44), respectively. The available evidence is generally of poor quality, with considerable risk of bias, and are of observational design.

INTERPRETATION:

In conclusion, this review highlights that flaws in data capture and interpretation, noted in the uncertainty within our meta-analysis, affect the applicability of current knowledge. Policy makers and researchers must focus on understanding the impact of this condition on individuals and society with appropriate funding initiatives and global collaborative research.
Keywords

Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Type of study: Observational study / Prognostic study / Reviews / Systematic review/Meta Analysis Topics: Long Covid Language: English Journal: EClinicalMedicine Year: 2021 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: J.eclinm.2021.100899

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Type of study: Observational study / Prognostic study / Reviews / Systematic review/Meta Analysis Topics: Long Covid Language: English Journal: EClinicalMedicine Year: 2021 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: J.eclinm.2021.100899