MONDAY, Oct. 23, 2023 (HealthDay News) — There is a wide range of long-term symptoms associated with both severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and non-COVID-19 acute respiratory infections (ARIs), according to a study published online Oct. 6 in EClinicalMedicine.

Giulia Vivaldi, from the Queen Mary University of London, and colleagues compared symptom profiles between people with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, people with previous non-COVID-19 ARIs, and contemporaneous controls. Data were analyzed for 16 potential long COVID symptoms and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) reported between Jan. 21 and Feb. 15, 2021, by individuals unvaccinated against SARS-CoV-2. Data were included for 10,171 participants (12.9 and 4.6 percent with SARS-CoV-2 infection and non-COVID-19 ARI, respectively).

The researchers found that both SARS-CoV-2 infection and non-COVID-19 ARI were associated with increased prevalence/severity of most symptoms and reduced HRQoL versus no infection. Increased odds of problems with taste/smell and lightheadedness or dizziness were seen for participants with SARS-CoV-2 infection versus those with non-COVID-19 ARIs (odds ratios, 19.74 and 1.74, respectively). Three symptom severity groups were identified for each infection type in separate latent class analysis models. In the most severe groups (representing 22 percent of participants in each group), SARS-CoV-2 infection presented with a higher probability of problems with taste/smell, hair loss, unusual sweating, unusual racing of the heart, and memory problems than non-COVID-19 ARI.

“Our findings shine a light not only on the impact of long COVID on people’s lives, but also other respiratory infections,” Vivaldi said in a statement. “A lack of awareness — or even the lack of a common term — prevents both reporting and diagnosis of these conditions.”

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