Comparative analysis of long-term self-reported COVID-19 symptoms among pregnant women

Abstract

Background: The negative effects of COVID-19 infections during pregnancy have been amply described, however, the persistent sequels of this infection have not been explored so far.

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe persisting symptoms after COVID-19 infection in pregnant and non-pregnant women in Ecuador.

Methods: A cross-sectional analysis based on an online, self-reporting questionnaire was conducted in Ecuador from April to July 2022. Participants were invited by social media, radio, and TV to voluntarily participate in our study. A total of 457 surveys were included in this study. We compared risk factor variables and long-term persisting symptoms of pregnant and non-pregnant women in Ecuador.

Results: Overall, 247 (54.1 %) responders claimed to have long-term symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Most of these symptoms were reported by non-pregnant women (94.0 %). The most common Long-COVID symptoms in pregnant women were fatigue (10.6 %), hair loss (9.6 %), and difficulty concentrating (6.2 %). We found that pregnant women who smoked had a higher risk of suffering fatigue.

Conclusions: The most frequent Long-COVID symptoms in pregnant women were fatigue, hair loss, and difficulty concentrating. Apparently, the patterns of presentation of long-term sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnant women do not differ significantly from reports available from studies in the general population.

Keywords: COVID-19; Long-COVID; Pregnancy; SARS-CoV-2; Sequalae; Women.