An exploratory factor analysis of long COVID
Central Asian Journal of Medical Hypotheses and Ethics
; 3(4):245-256, 2022.
Article
in English
| CAB Abstracts | ID: covidwho-2314190
ABSTRACT
An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) can provide a window into the latent dimensions of a disease, such as Long COVID. Discovering the latent factors of Long COVID enables researchers and clinicians to better conceptualize, study and treat this disease. In this study, participants were recruited from social media sites dedicated to COVID and Long COVID. Among the 480 participants, those who completed at least 90% of the survey, reported symptoms for two or more months since COVID-19 symptom onset, and had not been hospitalized for COVID were used in the EFA. The mean duration since initial symptom onset was 74.0 (37.3) weeks. A new questionnaire called The DePaul Symptom Questionnaire-COVID was used to assess self-reports of the frequency and severity of 38 Long COVID symptoms experienced over the most recent month. The most burdensome symptoms were "Symptoms that get worse after physical or mental activities (also known as Post-Exertional Malaise)," "Fatigue/extreme tiredness," "Difficulty thinking and/or concentrating," "Sleep problems," and "Muscle aches." The EFA resulted in a three-factor model with factors labeled General, PEM/Fatigue/Cognitive Dysfunction, and Psychological, consisting of 16, 6, and 3 items respectively (25 items in total). The reliability of the items in the EFA was .90 using a split-half reliability test. Finally, participant self-reported level of functional impairment was analyzed across the three EFA factors. Interpretations and applications to research and practice are provided.
Prion; Viral; Bacterial and Fungal Pathogens of Humans [VV210]; Techniques and Methodology [ZZ900]; viral diseases; symptoms; sleep disorders; sleep; reliability; human diseases; fatigue; factor analysis; coronavirus disease 2019; cognition; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; man; Illinois; USA; Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus; Betacoronavirus; Coronavirinae; Coronaviridae; Nidovirales; positive-sense ssRNA Viruses; ssRNA Viruses; RNA Viruses; viruses; Homo; Hominidae; primates; mammals; vertebrates; Chordata; animals; eukaryotes; Corn Belt States of USA; North Central States of USA; APEC countries; high income countries; North America; America; OECD Countries; very high Human Development Index countries; East North Central States of USA; post-acute COVID-19 syndrome; cognitive dysfunction; viral infections; SARS-CoV-2; tiredness; United States of America
Full text:
Available
Collection:
Databases of international organizations
Database:
CAB Abstracts
Topics:
Long Covid
Language:
English
Journal:
Central Asian Journal of Medical Hypotheses and Ethics
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
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