Infectious Disease
The Association Between Long-COVID Symptom Incidence in COVID-19 Patients and COVID-19 Vaccination David Olatunji* David Olatunji Olatunji Middle Tennessee State University
Introduction:
Millions globally experience Long-COVID-19. Evidence shows higher risk of among women, smokers, the obese, and those with pre-existing conditions. COVID-19 vaccination is associated with reduced risk of persistent symptoms. This study examines the relationship between Long-COVID symptom incidence in COVID-19 patients and COVID-19 vaccination
Methodology
A cross-sectional study was conducted using secondary data from the 2023 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), including non-institutionalized adults ≥ 18 years across all U.S. states and territories. The outcome variable was Long-COVID status, and the primary exposure variable was COVID-19 vaccination status. Statistical analysis was performed using IBM SPSS Statistics Version 29, including descriptive and bivariate analyses.
Results:
A total of 433,323 participants were included. Among respondents, 52.2% reported prior COVID-19 infection, and 13.8% of these developed Long COVID. Vaccinated individuals reported slightly lower Long COVID prevalence (13.5%) than unvaccinated individuals (14.7%) (OR=0.90, CI:0.81–1.01). Among asthmatics, vaccinated individuals had higher Long COVID prevalence (22.7%) than unvaccinated (20.8%) (OR=1.12, CI:0.86–1.45). Vaccinated individuals with COPD also reported higher prevalence (28.1%) compared with unvaccinated (24.6%) (OR=1.20, CI:0.83–1.73). Pregnant individuals showed similar Long COVID prevalence whether vaccinated (8.9%) or unvaccinated (7.1%). Pregnant females had lower prevalence overall (7.1–8.9%) compared to non-pregnant females (16.1–17.4%), with vaccination showing minimal effect in this group
Conclusion: COVID-19 vaccination was associated with a modest reduction in Long COVID in the general population. This effect was less evident among individuals with asthma, COPD, and those who were pregnant. These findings highlight the need for targeted prevention efforts and further research in high-risk subgroups.