Risk of long COVID has declined over course of pandemic
The risk of developing long COVID has decreased significantly over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an analysis of data led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (Zie, 2024)
Researchers attributed about 70% of the risk reduction to vaccination against COVID-19 and 30% to changes over time, including the SARS-CoV-2 virus’s evolving characteristics and improved detection and management of COVID-19.
The research is published July 17 in The New England Journal of Medicine.
The research on declining rates of long COVID marks the rare occasion when I have good news to report regarding this virus,” said the study’s senior author, Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, a Washington University clinical epidemiologist and global leader in COVID-19 research. “The findings also show the positive effects of getting vaccinated.
Long COVID – defined as symptoms of COVID-19 lasting more than 12 weeks – encompasses the lingering and debilitating effects on health experienced by about 10% of people who have been infected with COVID-19.
To date, the World Health Organization has documented more than 775 million cases of COVID-19.