Long COVID: an overview
Open accessAbstract
Background and aims Long COVID is the collective term to denote persistence of symptoms in those who have recovered from SARS-CoV-2 infection.Methods WE searched the pubmed and scopus databases for original articles and reviews. Based on the search result, in this review article we are analyzing various aspects of Long COVID.Results Fatigue, cough, chest tightness, breathlessness, palpitations, myalgia and difficulty to focus are symptoms reported in long COVID. It could be related to organ damage, post viral syndrome, post-critical care syndrome and others. Clinical evaluation should focus on identifying the pathophysiology, followed by appropriate remedial measures. In people with symptoms suggestive of long COVID but without known history of previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, serology may help confirm the diagnosis.Conclusions This review will helps the clinicians to manage various aspects of Long COVID.
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Social and financial effects of COVID-19 contribute to issues surrounding long COVID, including mental ill health.
“The social and financial effects of COVID-19 also contribute to the issues surrounding long COVID, including mental ill health.”
From The Lancet Commission on lessons for the future from the COVID-19 pandemic (2022) · cites this paper as [336]
People with long COVID often report impaired quality of life and issues with education and employment.
“People with long COVID often report impaired quality of life and issues with education and employment.”
From The Lancet Commission on lessons for the future from the COVID-19 pandemic (2022) · cites this paper as [336]
Reported long COVID symptoms include fatigue, cough, chest tightness or pain, shortness of breath, sore throat, taste or smell abnormalities, palpitations, myalgia, joint pain, numbness or tingling, skin rashes, hair loss, diarrhoea, urological problems, headache, neurocognitive issues, insomnia, impaired balance or gait, and mental health problems; symptoms can be continuous or relapsing and remm
“Reported symptoms of long COVID include fatigue, cough, chest tightness, chest pain, shortness of breath, sore throat, abnormalities of taste and smell, palpitations, myalgia, joint pain, numbness or tingling, skin rashes, hair loss, diarrhoea, urological problems, headache, neurocognitive issues including altered memory and concentration, cognitive blunting (known as brain fog), insomnia, im”
From The Lancet Commission on lessons for the future from the COVID-19 pandemic (2022) · cites this paper as [336]
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- Authors
- Raveendran, A. V., Jayadevan, R., & Sashidharan, S.
- Affiliations
- Government Medical College (IN)
- Corresponding author
- Raveendran, A.V.
- Venue
- Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2021-05
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 869-875
- ISSN
- 1871-4021 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8056514
- OpenAlex
- W3153912282
- Cited by
- 921
- References
- 40
- Citations by year
- 2026: 53 · 2025: 129 · 2024: 189 · 2023: 278 · 2022: 223 · 2021: 47 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 23.69
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Update notices
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome Clinical Research & Reviews (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Neurology › Long-Term Effects of COVID-19
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › COVID-19 Clinical Research Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Keywords
- long COVID, post-viral syndromes, persistent fatigue, dyspnea, myalgia, cognitive impairment, serological diagnosis, pathophysiology, clinical management
- MeSH terms
- COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome, Cough, Fatigue, Humans
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