Stockholm, (Samajweekly) Individuals who are severely affected by Covid-19 may be at higher risk of post-infection symptoms, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said.
In its latest report, ECDC added on Monday that “post Covid-19 symptoms appear to be more prevalent among patients from hospital settings when compared to community settings”.
According to the report, a wide range of physical and psychological symptoms have been reported by individuals at least 12 weeks following a SARS-CoV-2 infection, Xinhua news agency reported.
Five post Covid-19 symptoms — fatigue, shortness of breath, depression, headache and dizziness — were found to be more prevalent among patients from hospital settings than those from community settings.
The report is based on studies conducted in the EU/European Economic Area (EEA), the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
It may assist policymakers and public health authorities in estimating the burden of post Covid-19 condition, and support the planning of rehabilitation services during the post-acute phase of the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, ECDC also emphasised that estimates regarding the prevalence of symptoms must be interpreted with caution, as most of the studies lacked comparisons with groups of non-infected people.
This “may lead to overestimation of symptoms specifically attributable to prior SARS-CoV-2 infection,” ECDC said.
The agency stressed that there are still many unknown factors in terms of current and future risks to population for post-Covid-19 condition, in the context of increased levels of vaccination and hybrid immunity. ECDC therefore recommends additional large-scale studies.
