Report outlines new definition for Long COVID, reviews evidence for diagnosis, risk, and symptoms
Long COVID can cause more than 200 symptoms and it affects each person differently, according to a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
The new definition that the Academies proposes for Long COVID is that it is “an infection-associated chronic condition that occurs after COVID-19 infection and is present for at least three months as a continuous, relapsing and remitting, or progressive disease state that affects one or more organ systems.”
In the report, authors are urging the federal government, state and local authorities, clinicians, medical societies and organizations, public health practitioners, employers, educators, and others to adopt this new definition for Long COVID.
The report includes conclusions about Long COVID diagnosis, symptoms, and effect on daily function, noting that some health effects of the condition can impede an individual’s ability to work or attend school for 6 months to 2 years or more after COVID-19 infection.
“Diagnosing, measuring, and treating Long COVID is complicated,” said Paul Volberding, from UC San Francisco and chair of the committee that wrote the report. “This disease, which has existed in humans for less than 5 years, can present differently from person to person and can either resolve within weeks or persist for months or years.”
The report notes that a formal COVID-19 diagnosis or positive test is not necessary to consider a Long COVID diagnosis. Additionally, the condition is associated with a broad range of new or worsening health conditions that affect multiple organ systems, and the risk of Long COVID increases with the severity of COVID-19 illness.
The report includes a list of all the symptoms and conditions that have been associated with Long COVID, noting there is no curative treatment for Long COVID, only managing symptoms and optimizing quality of life and function. The report, which was sponsored by the Social Security Administration, says that Long COVID is a relatively novel and rapidly evolving condition, and continued research will be needed to effectively understand, treat, and manage it.