Only 26 percent of corona patients reported a full recovery five months after hospitalization. That number rose slightly to 28.9 percent after one year. Women are 33 percent less likely than men to get well at all, according to the study. Obese people have roughly 50 percent less chance of fully recovering, compared to 58 percent in patients who have been on a ventilator.
The researchers followed people who were discharged from a British hospital between March 2020 and April 2021 after being infected with Covid and looked at the recovery of 807 of them after five months and after a year. “The limited recovery of five months to one year after hospitalization in our survey of symptoms, mental health, exercise capacity, organ dysfunction and quality of life is striking,” said study researcher Rachel Evans.
The most common long-term Covid symptoms are fatigue, muscle aches, poor sleep, physical slowdown and shortness of breath. “Without effective treatments, long-term Covid could become a common new long-term condition,” said study co-author Christopher Brightling of the University of Leicester.
The study is still ongoing and will continue to monitor patients’ health.