A new study found that patients vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus were less likely to experience symptoms of post-COVID condition, or long COVID.
Researchers assessed the link between vaccinations and long COVID symptoms by examining individuals across eight large healthcare systems in the United States.
The study, published Wednesday in Nature Communications, used positive COVID tests from March 2021 to February 2022 among 161,531 vaccinated individuals and 161,531 unvaccinated individuals. Of the vaccinated patients, 96.7 percent of them received two doses of the COVID vaccine.
The authors followed patients over a 151-day period and found that the rate at which people experienced post-COVID conditions was significantly lower for vaccinated people.
Post-COVID conditions have been described as fatigue, loss of taste or smell, shortness of breath, cough, headache, pain and “a range of moderate to severe outcomes affecting the cardiovascular, pulmonary, renal, endocrine and neurological systems.” .
An exact definition has not yet been established due to the diversity and “nonspecific clinical presentation” of symptoms.
Ultimately, researchers found that if individuals were vaccinated before contracting the infection, there was a reduced risk of long COVID outcomes and consequences from the virus, although the study found that vaccinated people had a slightly higher risk of mental illness. during the study period.
A separate study found that long COVID symptoms can persist in some patients for up to two years.
The study follows a push from many senators who have said the government should become more involved in long COVID research and provide Americans with support for their long-lasting symptoms.
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