Browsing by Author "Minassie,Bethlehem Berhanu"

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    Attributes and Factors Associated with Long COVID in Patients Hospitalized for Acute COVID-19: A Retrospective Cohort Study
    (Addis Ababa University, 2024-04) Minassie,Bethlehem Berhanu; Kebede,Dawit(MD,Ass.Prof.); Amogne,Wondwossen(MD, PhD, Ass.Prof.)
    Background: It is now recognized that many patients have persistent symptoms after recovery from acute COVID-19 infection, an infection caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. This constellation of symptoms, commonly known in the literature as ‘Long COVID’ or ‘Post COVID-19 Condition’, may manifest with a wide range of physical and cognitive/psychological symptoms. Although the mechanisms are still poorly understood, much effort has been made in the scientific community to characterize this condition better. However, there is a lack of data on the frequency, risk factors, and severity of Long COVID in Africa. Objective: To assess the prevalence, attributes, and factors associated with Long COVID in patients hospitalized for acute COVID 19 Method: This was a retrospective chart review (Electronic Medical Records [EMR]) of patients who were discharged after hospitalization for acute COVID-19 infection from Hallelujah General Hospital (one of the first private hospitals where patients were treated for COVID-19). The hospital’s database was searched for patients who were hospitalized for acute COVID-19 infection from March 2020 to December 2022. Two hundred and forty-seven participants who underwent follow-up beginning four weeks after symptom onset were assessed for Long COVID. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data about their sociodemographic, clinical, laboratory, and imaging information during their admission and follow-up. The data was entered into SPSS version 29 for analysis. The relationship between the independent and dependent variables was explored through binary logistic regression. Results: The mean age of the participants was 58.5 (±13.9) years, and 160 (64.8%) were males. One hundred seventy-eight (72.1%) participants had at least one persisting symptom 4 weeks post symptom onset, at a median follow up time of 35 (IQR 32-40) days. The most frequently reported symptoms were fatigue (41.7%), shortness of breath (31.2%), cough (27.1%), and sleep disturbances (15%). Duration of symptoms more than 7 days before admission [aOR = 1.97; CI95% = 1.04 to 3.75; P=0.038] and length of stay more than 10 days in the hospital [aOR = 2.62; CI95% =1.20 to 5.72; P=0.016] were found to be significantly associated with Long COVID on multivariate analysis. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of Long COVID among patients hospitalized for acute COVID-19. Those who had longer duration of symptoms before admission and a longer stay in the hospital appear to have a higher risk.