The epidemiology of long COVID in US adults two years after the start of the US SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

Abstract

AbstractObjectivesTo characterize prevalence and impact of long COVID.MethodsWe conducted a population-representative survey, June 30-July 2, 2022, of a random sample of 3,042 United States adults. Using questions developed by the United Kingdom’s Office of National Statistics, we estimated the prevalence by sociodemographics, adjusting for gender and age.ResultsAn estimated 7.3% (95% CI: 6.1-8.5%) of all respondents reported long COVID, approximately 18,533,864 adults. One-quarter (25.3% [18.2-32.4%]) of respondents with long COVID reported their day-to-day activities were impacted ‘a lot’ and 28.9% had SARS-CoV-2 infection >12 months ago. The prevalence of long COVID was higher among respondents who were female (aPR: 1.84 [1.40-2.42]), had comorbidities (aPR: 1.55 [1.19-2.00]) or were not (versus were) boosted (aPR: 1.67 [1.19-2.34]) or not vaccinated (versus boosted) (aPR: 1.41 (1.05-1.91)).ConclusionsWe observed a high burden of long COVID and substantial variability in prevalence of SARS-CoV-2. Population-based surveys are an important surveillance tool and supplement to ongoing efforts to monitor long COVID.