One of the   largest studies ofLong - COVIDyet convey reveals that more than a third of people who test positive for the virus have at least one symptom three to six months afterwards . Symptoms are 50 per centum more common than for mass recover from even serious bouts of Influenza .

Almost since the pandemic get down anecdotal reports have appeared of mass who survived , but suffered unexpectedly mess about effects . These accounts get not only from those who involve to be hospitalized but from people whose lives never appear in danger and in some type were not all that wan .

With metre we ’ve encourage to scientific studies , but most of these have eitherbeen smallor usedself - selecting sample distribution . Now a paper inPLOS Medicineprovides a much more rigorous picture . regrettably , it is just as disturbing as the former work .

Dr Max Taquetof the University of Oxford and carbon monoxide gas - authors looked at the anonymized electronic health records of 273,618 American COVID-19 survivor . Of these , 57 per centum account one or more symptoms associated with Long - COVID in the six month after contagion . It ’s hardly surprising more than half the people with COVID did n’t recover instantly , but when the authors focused only on health book for the period three to six months after testing plus they still find 36.6 pct had reported at least one symptom .

All the symptoms the author investigated could have cause other than SARS CoV-2 contagion . Indeed the most common , Anxiety or Depression ( 15 per centum ) , could easy reflect the state of the world rather than personally catching the computer virus .

However , other outstandingly common symptom include abnormal external respiration ( 8 per centum ) and breast / pharynx pain ( 6 percent ) . Across the board , symptom were 44 - 104 per centum high than among those who never capture the disease .

At first sight , the pace of tiredness ( 6 percent ) and headache ( 5 pct ) reported in the study look abject , but these are event wicked enough to make it onto wellness records .

“ The results reassert that a significant proportion of people , of all ages , can be bear on by a range of symptom and difficulties in the six month after COVID-19 contagion , ” Taquet tell in astatement . “ These information complement findings from ego - composition survey , and show that clinicians are diagnosing affected role with these symptoms . We need appropriately configure services to deal with the current and succeeding clinical want . ”

Predictably , mass who ache more severe attacks were also more likely to experience linger symptoms , but the difference Taquet and co - authors found is not as sharp as might be expected . Even people who skated through relatively whole can be crazy months later than those who were in hospital .

needs historic period is a risk cistron . charwoman were also slightly more potential to be diagnosed with Long - COVID symptoms than men , but the paper also finds differences in symptom absolute frequency by sex and age . Men , particularly erstwhile ones , more often reported breathing trouble and “ brain fog ” , while younger women were more likely to have concern and anxiousness .

Perhaps the most disturbing finding is that 40 percent of Long - COVID sufferers experienced symptoms after the three - calendar month mark they had not cover during the first recovery full point .

“ Research of different sort is desperately needed to understand why not everyone recuperate rapidly and fully from COVID-19 , ” allege senior authorProfessor Paul Harrison .