Factors associated with reduction in quality of life after SARS-CoV-2 infection
Abstract
Abstract Long-term changes in health-related quality of life (HrQoL) after SARS-CoV-2 infection are common, but their causes and consequences are poorly understood. This prospective, population-based study examined associations between HrQoL and 49 demographic and clinical variables. HrQoL was assessed using the European Quality-of-Life-5-Dimensions-5-Level-Version in 3,475 participants (56% female; aged 18–88 years) approximately 9 months (baseline) and 26 months (follow-up) after their initial infection. Results were compared with the demographic and clinical variables using recursive feature elimination and random forest regression analyses. A statistically significant improvement in HrQoL was observed during the observation period. At baseline, 39% of the variance in HrQoL was explained by fatigue, muscle pain, number of remaining symptoms (RS), perceived stress, and age. At follow-up, fatigue, RS, perceived stress, muscle and joint pain, and age explained 54% of the variance in HrQoL. Changes in HrQoL were associated with changes in fatigue, RS, and perceived stress, meaning that if these decreased from baseline to follow-up, then HrQoL was improved. However, it was not possible to predict whether an individual’s HrQoL would improve or worsen 1 year later based on baseline variable scores. The aforementioned symptoms are specifically associated with impairment in the population’s usual activities.
Article Details
Authors (35)
Christian Neumann
Tim J. Hartung
Klara Boje
Thomas Bahmer
Julian Keil
Wolfgang Lieb
Katrin Franzpoetter
Julius Welzel
Irina Chaplinskaya-Sobol
Matthias Endres
German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK) Partner Site Berlin, Berlin
Johanna Geritz
Karl Georg Haeusler
Department of Neurology, University Hospital Ulm, Ulm, Germany
Peter Heuschmann
Andreas Hinz
Sina M. Pütz
Anna Schäfer
Carolin Nuernberger
Lena Schmidbauer
Michael Krawczak
Anne-Kathrin Ruß
Lilian Krist
Thomas Keil
Jennifer Kudelka
Corina Maetzler
Anja Mehnert-Theuerkauf
Felipe A. Montellano
Caroline Morbach
Sein Schmidt
Jan Heyckendorf
Flo Steigerwald
Stefan Stoerk
Christina Lemhoefer
Stefan Schreiber
Carsten Finke
Walter Maetzler