Identification of the needs of individuals affected by COVID-19

Halina B Stanley; Veronica Pereda-Campos; Marylou Mantel; Catherine Rouby; Christelle Daudé; Pierre-Emmanuel Aguera; Lesly Fornoni; Thomas Hummel; Susanne Weise; Coralie Mignot; Iordanis Konstantinidis; Konstantinos Garefis; Camille Ferdenzi; Denis Pierron; Moustafa Bensafi

doi:10.1038/s43856-024-00510-1

Identification of the needs of individuals affected by COVID-19

Commun Med (Lond). 2024 May 9;4(1):83. doi: 10.1038/s43856-024-00510-1.

Authors

Halina B Stanley¹, Veronica Pereda-Campos², Marylou Mantel^{3

2}, Catherine Rouby³, Christelle Daudé³, Pierre-Emmanuel Aguera³, Lesly Fornoni³, Thomas Hummel⁴, Susanne Weise⁴, Coralie Mignot⁴, Iordanis Konstantinidis⁵, Konstantinos Garefis⁵, Camille Ferdenzi³, Denis Pierron², Moustafa Bensafi⁶

Affiliations

¹ Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, INSERM, Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, NEUROPOP, F-69500, Bron, France. halina.stanley@cnrs.fr.
² Équipe de Médecine Evolutive Faculté de chirurgie dentaire-UMR5288, CNRS/Université Paul-Sabatier Toulouse III, Toulouse, 31400, France.
³ Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, INSERM, Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, NEUROPOP, F-69500, Bron, France.
⁴ Smell & Taste Clinic, Department of Otorhinlaryngology, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
⁵ 2nd Academic ORL Department, Papageorgiou Hospital, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki, Greece.
⁶ Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, INSERM, Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, NEUROPOP, F-69500, Bron, France. moustafa.bensafi@cnrs.fr.

Abstract

Background: The optimal management of COVID-19 symptoms and their sequelae remains an important area of clinical research. Policy makers have little scientific data regarding the effects on the daily life of affected individuals and the identification of their needs. Such data are needed to inform effective care policy.

Methods: We studied 639 people with COVID-19 resident in France via an online questionnaire. They reported their symptoms, effects on daily life, and resulting needs, with particular focus on olfaction.

Results: The results indicate that a majority of participants viewed their symptoms as disabling, with symptoms affecting their physical and mental health, social and professional lives. 60% of the individuals reported having unmet medical, psychological and socio-professional support needs. Finally, affected individuals were concerned about the risk and invasiveness of possible treatments as shown by a preference for non-invasive intervention over surgery to cure anosmia.

Conclusions: It is important that policy makers take these needs into consideration in order to assist affected individuals to regain a normal quality of life.

Plain language summary

The impact of COVID-19 has been substantial, both on individuals’ health and on society. Information is needed to understand the biological mechanisms underlying the illness and to provide appropriate support for people affected. This study uses data from an online questionnaire of adults diagnosed with COVID-19 to characterize symptoms, understand their impact on peoples’ everyday lives, and determine the support that people need. Our over-arching analysis of symptoms experienced reveals that heart- and skin-related symptoms are linked to chronic illness, and symptoms related to the sense of smell may have a different underlying disease mechanism. Most respondents had a mild initial illness, but their symptoms were long-lasting and had a severe impact. Our findings show that sufferers need different kinds of support in order to regain a normal quality of life.