Long COVID prevalence decreased in US, but activity impacts remain unchanged (By: Stephanie Soucheray, MA)
Today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, researchers using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Household Pulse Survey show the prevalence of people reporting long COVID dropped since last summer but has now stalled.
And for those who do experience lingering symptoms of the virus, one quarter of respondents said the condition is greatly limiting daily activities.
Declines leveled off in January
Estimates concerning what percentage of people with COVID-19 will develop long COVID change frequently, with studies showing a prevalence of 7.5 to 41%.
The Household Pulse Survey asked US adults every 2 weeks to report COVID-19 diagnoses and long COVID symptoms. Researchers have been conducting the survey since the summer of 2022.
In the present study, researchers found the prevalence of long COVID (symptoms lasting more than 12 weeks following acute diagnosis) decreased from 7.5% for all nonhospitalized US adult respondents in June of 2022, to 6.0% in June of 2023.
“From June 1–13, 2022, through January 4–16, 2023, prevalence decreased 0.28% per survey cycle (p = 0.001), then remained stable (0.006% change per cycle, p = 0.95),“ the authors wrote. “Among all adults and among those reporting previous COVID-19, long COVID prevalence tended to be lower among the youngest and the oldest age group.”
Among adults reporting previous COVID-19 infections, the prevalence of long COVID went from from 18.9% to 11.0% between June of 2022 and 2023.
26% say long COVID affects daily living
Unlike the prevalence of long COVID, the percentage of people who said their lingering symptoms were affecting daily living remained stable from the summer of 2022 to the summer of 2023.
A total of 26.4% (95% confidence interval, 24.0% to 28.9%) of adults with long COVID reported significant activity limitations.
“No clear pattern emerged for prevalence of significant activity limitation across age groups,” the authors wrote.
In a recent United Kingdom study, people with long COVID that affected daily living had similar quality of life to those of patients with advanced cancers.
The team said long COVID has been linked to lower levels of full-time employment and unemployment, which highlights the need for healthcare needs planning and other support services. “The larger economic and societal impact of long COVID could be far-reaching if working-age adults are unable to maintain employment or care for children or aging parents,” they wrote.
