The associations of long-COVID symptoms, clinical characteristics and affective psychological constructs in a non-hospitalized cohort / Zsófia Ocsovszky [et al.]
Bibliogr.: p. 243-245. - Abstr. eng. - DOI: https://doi.org/10.1556/2060.2022.00030
In: Physiology International. - ISSN 2498-602X, eISSN 2677-0164. - 2022. 109. évf. 2. sz., p. 230-245. : ill.
Objective: The effects of COVID-19, especially long-COVID, on the psychological health is incompletely understood. We aimed to evaluate the mid-term associations of the long-COVID symptoms and affective factors in a cohort of non-hospitalized patients. Method: A total of 166 patients were enrolled in this study, including 119 sedentary/non-athlete and 47 athlete subjects at the Post-COVID Outpatient Clinic of Semmelweis University. Clinical data regarding acute and long-term symptoms were obtained and detailed laboratory testing was carried out. Demographic data and psychological tests were collected. Results: We found a positive association between the level of depressive symptoms and anxiety and long-COVID symptom count, while life satisfaction and social support correlated negatively with the long-COVID symptom count. Higher haemoglobin levels and lower LDL-cholesterol were also shown to be moderating factors. A regression model showed that symptoms during acute infection, depression, age, and lifesatisfaction are predictors of the long-COVID symptom count. The presence of pre-existing affective or anxiety problems was also associated with higher reported long-COVID symptom count. Furthermore, we found significant association between pre-existing mental health problems and the investigated psychological constructs. Conclusion: It appears that long COVID-19 is associated with acute symptoms and mental factors. Depression and anxiety have been shown to have a negative effect on symptom perception, and also contribute to a higher number of symptoms in a non-hospitalized sample. Our study suggests bidirectional interconnection between clinical and psychological factors. Kulcsszavak: COVID-19, affective symptoms, perceived social support, PTSD, blood test