Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection
Background COVID-19 disease results in disparate responses between individuals and has led to the emergence of long coronavirus disease (Long-COVID), characterised by persistent and cyclical symptomology. To understand the complexity of Long-COVID, the importance of symptom surveillance and prospect...
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BMJ Publishing Group
2025-01-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/1/e086646.full |
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| author | Jane Ormerod Nicholas F Sculthorpe Marie McLaughlin Luke Cerexhe Eilidh Macdonald Antonio Dello Iacono Nilihan E M Sanal-Hayes Joanne Ingram Rachel Meach David Carless Lawrence D Hayes |
| author_facet | Jane Ormerod Nicholas F Sculthorpe Marie McLaughlin Luke Cerexhe Eilidh Macdonald Antonio Dello Iacono Nilihan E M Sanal-Hayes Joanne Ingram Rachel Meach David Carless Lawrence D Hayes |
| author_sort | Jane Ormerod |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background COVID-19 disease results in disparate responses between individuals and has led to the emergence of long coronavirus disease (Long-COVID), characterised by persistent and cyclical symptomology. To understand the complexity of Long-COVID, the importance of symptom surveillance and prospective longitudinal studies is evident.Methods A 9-month longitudinal prospective cohort study was conducted within Scotland (n=287), using a mobile app to determine the proportion of recovered individuals and those with persistent symptoms and common symptoms, and associations with gender and age.Results 3.1% of participants experienced symptoms at month 9, meeting the criteria for Long-COVID, as defined by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence terminology. The random effects model revealed a significant time (month) effect for infection recovery (p<0.001, estimate=0.07). Fatigue, cough and muscle pain were the most common symptoms at baseline, with fatigue persisting the longest, while symptoms like cough improved rapidly. Older age increased the likelihood of reporting pain (p=0.028, estimate=0.07) and cognitive impairment (p<0.001, estimate=0.93). Female gender increased the likelihood of headaches (p=0.024, estimate=0.53) and post-exertional malaise (PEM) frequency (p=0.05, estimate=137.68), and increased time x gender effect for PEM frequency (p=0.033, estimate=18.96).Conclusions The majority of people fully recover from acute COVID-19, although often slowly. Age and gender play a role in symptom burden and recovery rates, emphasising the need for tailored approaches to Long-COVID management. Further analysis is required to determine the characteristics of the individuals still reporting ongoing symptoms months after initial infection to identify risk factors and potential predictors for the development of Long-COVID. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c04bcf240b18482d9332ae5e6c69603b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-c04bcf240b18482d9332ae5e6c69603b2025-01-21T01:40:10ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552025-01-0115110.1136/bmjopen-2024-086646Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infectionJane Ormerod0Nicholas F Sculthorpe1Marie McLaughlin2Luke Cerexhe3Eilidh Macdonald4Antonio Dello Iacono5Nilihan E M Sanal-Hayes6Joanne Ingram7Rachel Meach8David Carless9Lawrence D Hayes105 Long COVID Scotland, Aberdeen, UK1 Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK2 Institute for Sport Physical Education and Health Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK1 Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK1 Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK1 Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK3 School of Health and Society, University of Salford, Salford, UK1 Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK4 Durham University, Durham, UK1 Sport and Physical Activity Research Institute, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK6 Lancaster University Medical School, Lancaster University, Lancaster, Lancashire, UKBackground COVID-19 disease results in disparate responses between individuals and has led to the emergence of long coronavirus disease (Long-COVID), characterised by persistent and cyclical symptomology. To understand the complexity of Long-COVID, the importance of symptom surveillance and prospective longitudinal studies is evident.Methods A 9-month longitudinal prospective cohort study was conducted within Scotland (n=287), using a mobile app to determine the proportion of recovered individuals and those with persistent symptoms and common symptoms, and associations with gender and age.Results 3.1% of participants experienced symptoms at month 9, meeting the criteria for Long-COVID, as defined by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence terminology. The random effects model revealed a significant time (month) effect for infection recovery (p<0.001, estimate=0.07). Fatigue, cough and muscle pain were the most common symptoms at baseline, with fatigue persisting the longest, while symptoms like cough improved rapidly. Older age increased the likelihood of reporting pain (p=0.028, estimate=0.07) and cognitive impairment (p<0.001, estimate=0.93). Female gender increased the likelihood of headaches (p=0.024, estimate=0.53) and post-exertional malaise (PEM) frequency (p=0.05, estimate=137.68), and increased time x gender effect for PEM frequency (p=0.033, estimate=18.96).Conclusions The majority of people fully recover from acute COVID-19, although often slowly. Age and gender play a role in symptom burden and recovery rates, emphasising the need for tailored approaches to Long-COVID management. Further analysis is required to determine the characteristics of the individuals still reporting ongoing symptoms months after initial infection to identify risk factors and potential predictors for the development of Long-COVID.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/1/e086646.full |
| spellingShingle | Jane Ormerod Nicholas F Sculthorpe Marie McLaughlin Luke Cerexhe Eilidh Macdonald Antonio Dello Iacono Nilihan E M Sanal-Hayes Joanne Ingram Rachel Meach David Carless Lawrence D Hayes Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection BMJ Open |
| title | Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection |
| title_full | Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection |
| title_fullStr | Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection |
| title_short | Tracking Persistent Symptoms in Scotland (TraPSS): a longitudinal prospective cohort study of COVID-19 recovery after mild acute infection |
| title_sort | tracking persistent symptoms in scotland trapss a longitudinal prospective cohort study of covid 19 recovery after mild acute infection |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/1/e086646.full |
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