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Dealing with uncertainty. A qualitative study on the illness' experience in patients with Long-COVID in Italy.
Moretti, Chiara; Collaro, Concetta; Terzoni, Cristina; Colucci, Gennaro; Copelli, MariaRosa; Sarli, Leopoldo; Artioli, Giovanna.
  • Moretti C; Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia - Università di Parma . chiara.moretti@unipr.it.
  • Collaro C; Department of Neurology, Hospital of Piacenza - AUSL PC, Piacenza, Italy. C.Collaro@ausl.pc.it.
  • Terzoni C; Department of DPS, Hospital of Piacenza - AUSL PC, Piacenza, Italy. c.terzoni@ausl.pc.it.
  • Colucci G; Department of Radiological Functions, Hospital of Piacenza - AUSL PC, Piacenza, Italy. g.colucci@ausl.pc.it.
  • Copelli M; Department of Primary Care, Hospital of Piacenza - AUSL PC, Piacenza, Italy. m.copelli@ausl.pc.it.
  • Sarli L; Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Parma, Italy. leopoldo.sarli@unipr.it.
  • Artioli G; Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Parma, Italy. giovanna.artioli@unipr.it.
Acta Biomed ; 93(6): e2022349, 2022 12 16.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2205219
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND GOALS An unknown proportion of people who had COVID-19 infection continue to experience symptoms such as fatigue, breathlessness, joint or muscle pain, difficulty sleeping, and brain fog. These symptoms have a significant impact on the quality of life. Long-COVID is a new multisystem disease still under investigation. This research aims to explore the illness experienced by patients suffering from Long-COVID in Italy. RESEARCH DESIGN AND

METHODS:

Qualitative methodology with semi-structured interviews. Participants were recruited on the Facebook patient group between October 2021 and January 2022. Participants had been experiencing symptoms for at least three months following confirmed COVID-19 infection. Interviews were conducted by video call, recorded and transcribed with consent. The thematic analysis method has been chosen to infer data from textual material.

RESULTS:

17 interviews with women with Long-COVID have been analysed. The main themes include a total change of life due to the symptomatology, loss of autonomy that affects social, family and professional life; social isolation, a sense of abandonment often increased by stigma, the difficulty of being believed and achieving diagnosis; difficulty in managing symptoms and accessing to care services; living with uncertainty caused by the lack of institutional, social, professional, familial and medical support. 

Conclusions:

Intervention programs, both institutional and social-health policies should be developed for patients with Long-COVID. The impact of symptoms could be reduced by developing standards and protocols, and by ensuring access to care and to multi-disciplinary rehabilitation. Further development of knowledge on Long-COVID is essential.
Subject(s)

Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Quality of Life / COVID-19 Type of study: Qualitative research Topics: Long Covid Limits: Female / Humans Language: English Journal: Acta Biomed Journal subject: Medicine Year: 2022 Document Type: Article

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Quality of Life / COVID-19 Type of study: Qualitative research Topics: Long Covid Limits: Female / Humans Language: English Journal: Acta Biomed Journal subject: Medicine Year: 2022 Document Type: Article