Post recovery manifestations have become another concern in patients who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Numerous reports have shown that COVID-19 has a variety of long-term effects on almost all systems including respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, neurological, psychiatric, and dermatological systems. We aimed to investigate the prevalence and characteristics of the post-COVID syndrome among COVID-19 survivors and to determine the factors associated with persistent symptoms. This prospective study enrolled in patients with COVID-19 followed in hospital or outpatient clinics in Ankara City Hospital. We performed a special questionnaire to inquire about the presence of persistent symptoms beyond 12 weeks from the first diagnosis. Demographic data, comorbid diseases, characteristics of acute COVID-19, presence of persistent symptoms by systems, and knowledge about outpatient clinic visits after recovery were assessed. Of a total of 1007 participants, 39.0% had at least one comorbidity, and 47.5% had persistent symptoms. Fatigue/easy fatigability, myalgia, and loss of weight were the most frequent persistent symptoms (overall 29.3%) followed by respiratory symptoms (25.4%). A total of 235 participants had visited outpatient clinics due to several reasons during the post-COVID-19 period, and 17 of them were hospitalized. Severe acute COVID-19, hospitalization, and presence of comorbidity were independent factors for the development of persistent symptoms. Fully understanding the spectrum of the post-COVID syndrome is essential for appropriate management of all its long-term effects. Our study once again underlined the fact that the prevalence of post-COVID syndrome is higher than expected and concerns many systems, and a multidisciplinary follow-up should be provided to COVID-19 survivors in the post recovery period.
Keywords: COVID-19; long-COVID; persistent symptoms; post-COVID; prevalence; questionnaire.
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