A multinational cross-sectional study on the prevalence and predictors of long COVID across 33 countries
Abstract
Abstract The symptoms of long COVID (LC) can be debilitating and may be associated with anxiety, social stigma, and quality of life deterioration. Identifying patients at risk of LC is important to offer follow-up care and plan population-level public health measures. The current multinational study aimed to assess the prevalence and predictors of LC in the general population. We conducted an online, multinational, cross-sectional survey between April 2022 and January 2023, targeting participants 18 years and older with a previously confirmed COVID-19 infection. We used convenience sampling to recruit participants through an online Google form. We collected demographic data, past medical history, infection details, post-COVID-19 symptoms, and quality of life. Responses were then translated into English. LC was defined as per the World Health Organization. A single-variable analysis was conducted to identify factors significantly associated with LC development. Following the removal of multicollinear variables, a generalized linear model was established to estimate the contribution of different predictors to LC occurrence. A total of 11,801 respondents from 33 countries were included in the analysis. The mean age for participants was 32.7 ± 12.8 years, with 61% being females. BMI averaged 25.2 ± 4.8 across participants, and 14.8% of them were smokers. Seventy-eight percent of participants reported receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. Respondents with PCR-confirmed COVID-19 were then categorized into those with LC (N = 2335, 19.8%) and without LC (N = 9466 individuals, 80.2%). Our model identified 25 significant predictors. The predictors of higher LC risk included ICU admission (OR 2.08; 95% CI 1.36, 3.18; P = 0.001), female sex (OR 1.8; 95% CI 1.61, 2.02; P < 0.001), fatigue during the infection (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.43, 1.78; P < 0.001), identifying as Hispanic (OR 1.53; 95% CI 1.26, 1.85; P < 0.001), and pre-existing gastrointestinal disease (OR 1.48; 95% CI 1.22, 1.8; P < 0.001). In conclusion, we identified key LC predictors, including ICU admission, female sex, and acute fatigue as primary risk factors, while African American and Asian ethnicities and receiving even one dose of vaccination demonstrated protective effects.
Article Details
Authors (290)
Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee
Eman Ayman Nada
Mohammed Al-kafarna
Ahmed Shaheen
Shivabalan Kathavarayan Ramu
Abdelrahman H. Hafez
Sajeda Ghassan Matar
Ahmed Assar
Mohamed Elshennawy
Hazem Abu El-Enien
Hala Jamal Redwan
Sarah Makram Elsayed
Maha Jabir Omran
Omar Hammam Salloum
Hossam Almadhoon
Mohamed Mamdouh
Engy A. Wahsh
Anas Zakarya Nourelden
Alaa Ahmed Elshanbary
Walid Abdel-Aziz
Hivan Haji Rashid
Iman Basheti
Khaled Mohamed Ragab
Ahmed Taher Masoud
Abdelrahman I. Abushouk
Aya Abdalhady Saleh
Ashraf Ahmed Hassan Hamed
Asmaa Gomaa Alwarraqi
Ahmed Mohamed Nour El-deen
Bashar Khaled Almaghary
Hedaya Ramzi Khrawat
Yousef Raid AbdAlrazeq
Saba Usama Turk
Shomoa Alaa Elhajjar
Yousuf Mohammed Deeb
Malak Yousef Badawi
Roa’a Mohammad Aljuneidi
Saja Emad Abusabha
Fida Hussien Al-Ali
Anwar Yousef Jabari
Nusaiba Mohamad Al Zaalan
Ahmed Hashem Fathallah
Dina Osama Yehia Ibrahim
Eman Sayed Mahmoud
Bethel Abraha Gebremeskel
Abdelrahman Mohamed Mahmoud
Mai Mohammad Abdalraouf
Doaa Salah Elgendy
Mostafa Ahmed Elsayed
Hadir Atef Soliman
Manal Mohamed Ali
Mona Abd Elhameed
Asmaa Mohamed Saber
Taghreed Reda Moustafa
Shereen Elsayed Tawfeek
Rania Saad Ramadan
Mahmoud M. Elhady
Arun Quadros Darian
Victor Carrera Gomes
Gabriela Maria Roncon
Fabio Deltreggia
Flavio Castagna de Sousa
João Vitor Eugenio Seabra
Ricardo Silveira Filho
Nada Mohammed Abdel-Aziz Mohammed Zaho
Talha Hannan Chaudhry
Kimanthi Cyrus
Nafisa Agil Hussein
Harshil Girish Patel
Waseth Joy Noela
Preetesh Jakharia
Misbah Shakeel Akhtar
Mohamed Abdelhamid Masoud
Mohamed Saad Elsaied
Mohamed Reda Ezz
Aya Mohamed Rabie Abd Elghany
Ghadeer Magdy Elshafey
Khaled Abouelmagd
Ahmed Gamal Ahmed Shetia
Ghader Mofed Alibrahem
Rasha Hazzaa Ibrahim
Hala Aldeeb
Nouha Halim Moustafa
Alia Mhd Mosalam Al Hosni
Souliman Ahmad Radeef
Lina Dalati
Elaf Sa’ad Aldeen Alashkar
AbdelKader Nabeel Malih
Hisham Alhosni
Mohammed Amir Rais
Bouchra Belhocine
Hadil Elbatoul Meguellatni
Samah Chaib
Hanane Hammoumi
Hadjer Belmerabet
Rayhana Khellafi
Mohammed Zakaria Amrani
Bouthaina Memmou
Abdelkader Kherbache
Jalal Almeer
Salmah Meteran Alrshedi
Amnah A. Alharbi
Adel Mohamed Aboregela
Wessam Abd El Razek Ibrahim Mady
Zenat Khired
Suleiman Ayalew Belay
Elaf Mohamed Hashim Abdelraheem
Tarteel Abdelaal Hassan Omer
Rowa sirelkhatim mohamedahmed
Roaa Ahmed Elobeid
Hamid Magzoub
Fatima Elzahra Ebnomer Mohamed Ibrahim
Basel Adel Mohammed Basrawi
Sarah Fuad Abdo Thabit
Walaa Ismat Mubark Abdelmgeed
Hajar Abdalrazak Alhakari
Fatima Abd Elmonim Mohammed Abd Elkareem
Iman Hisham Abd Elraheem Merghani
Faisal Ismail
Fatma Ahmed Alsharif
Fatima Asedeq Abdulali
Israa Mohammed Benismail
Aisha Hasan Ibreerah
Raneem Ahmed Egzait
Fatima Ibrahim Abushaala
Raga A. Elzahaf
Mahmoud Alfituri Abushiba
Khaled Ali Almehdawi
Haya Ahmed Hijazi
Esraa Emad Alazq
Anas Ishqair
Zakaria Abdallah Abu Elkishik
Taima Nemir Awamleh
Lana Adel Tannous
Nour Mohammad Abumurra
Rayyan Ahmad Al-Qaryouti
Baha’ Ghandi Mohammad Aljeradat
Mai Mahmoud AlAdwan
Rafy Souheil Odeh
Wasan Fawzi Alsafadi
Sally S. Alabdullah
Aseel Ahmad Alkhraibat
Darine Touka
Huzan Hashim Arsalan
Dini Setyowati
Nastiti Faradilla Ramadhani
Alexander Patera Nugraha
Rini Devijanti Ridwan
Diah Savitri Ernawati
Andra Rizqiawan
Ratri Maya Sitalaksmi
Taufan Bramantoro
Beta Novia Rizky
Agung Sosiawan
Tamara Tango
Evangelia Samara
Agathi Karakosta
Pantazi Danai
Gloria Evdoxia Izountouemoi
Konstantinos Stamatis
Ghulam Mujtaba Mughal
Ali Asghar Bhutto
Sidra Absar
Sana Hilal
Anusheh Khan
Sumair Liaqat
Faiza Qamar
Ikram Uddin panhwar
Aayza Ahmed
Javeria Ikram
Syeda Kashfia Haider Zaidi
Sana Asghar
Hafiz Ameer Hamza
Naomi Chinyere Chikezie
Maryam Abdulkarim
Durojaye Aishat Bisoye
Yahaya Fatihu Adam
Jesutomini Esther Abikoye
Opara Franklyn Chiemekam
Al-Awal Abdullah Adedeji
Jeremiah Oluwatomi Itodo Daniel
Bello Saifullah Muhammad
Sara Tavakkoli
Jegr Waad Farj
Darya Salih Hussein
Faheema Rafo Khalaf
Hadiya Rafo Khalaf
Mamend Ibraheem
Hussein Kameran Jabbar
Dlnaz Ayoub Abdi
Sefina Gwachha
Saroma Awal
Bishal Dahal Khatri
Vivekanand lekhak
Belal Shohayeb
Hanem Ellethy
Pop Dariana
Miruna Doru
Rus Nicolae-Dochian
Paul Adrian Pop
Maria Adriana Pop
Rigman Darius-Gabriel
Ene Andrei-Iulian
Bogdan Adrian Buta
Raul Petric
Esmail Abdelmonem
Peter Ghattas
Mira A. O. Alabadla
Tabarak Qassim
Moosa Munawar AlHoda
Joanna Eliza Thomas
Kevin Regi
Mahdi Salah Mahdi
Sornali Roy
Waleed Sameer Abdulkarim Mohamed Affoni
Hasan Alauddeen Yousif Mahmood Alomari
Nour El Houda Ben Jouda
Nayanika Ann Cherian
Devika Nair
Akil Vaibhav
Akash Verma
Rishi Bhatele
Md Ariful Haque
Nazifa Tahseen Akhi
Sabrina Sultana Liza
Hasan Shahriar
Shirsendu Nag Saikat
Fahmida Aslam
Anushka Ann Noor Chowdhury
Khandker Saadiqul Quader
Anju Beesetty
Feven Mekonnen Belay
Michael Azeze Negussie
Fitsum Assefa Gemechu
Samuel Mesfin Girma
Eden Haile Hagos
Ebisa Damesa Amensisa
Mazen El Jamal
Sawsane Ahmad Ghaddar
Zainab Musa Ali
Zeinab Hammoud
Solay Farhat
Ali Ismail
Kazi Hassan Murad
Shahin Ahmed
Akash Saha
Abdinoor Mohamed
Fatema ENur Mou
Ajmina Hasan Flabe
Andrés Estrella
Juan Carlos Panchi Jima
Milton Andrés Méndez Guerrero
María José Rengel Chalco
Walter Alexis Encalada Collahuazo
Carlos Padilla Hernandez
Paola Marlid Donoso Estrada
Karla Alejandra Chiliquinga Jácome
Erika Estefanía Rodríguez Prieto
Niyonkuru Fabrice
Mpawenimana Bosco
Maramuke Carine
Crispine Harushimana
Iteka Délissa Carmella
Irankunda Kévin
Nsabimana Bénit
Mfuranzima Japhet
Irakoze Clovis
Zeynep Ceren Zekey
Selay Doğan
Orgwan Zahra
Mustafa Mehmetoğlu
Eman Khaled
Fouziya Neyyar
Carlos Emilio Hernández Mancia
Iris Rebeca Campos Castro
Carlos Andrés Urrea Valencia
Tania Elizabeth Bolaños Rosero
Priscilla Lopez Ahumada
Narjiss Aji
Arwa Aboumedian
Samia Kessab
Musab Bouhajra
Fatima Zahra Aboumedian
Oumaima Kenna
Amal Shukri Ali Abdulqader Al-Akhdhary
Ahmed Sadeq Maknoon
Nagwan Mansoor Yousef
Abdullah Mohamed Alsoufi
Aiman Al-Khadher
Mohamed Onyango