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Compared with no or short-duration symptoms, unresolved Long COVID was associated with 38% lower relative odds of paid work and higher odds of changing working hours.
Adults in an English population-based cohort were followed for a median of 23 months; approximately 4% had unresolved Long COVID. These adjusted associations do not establish that Long COVID caused the employment changes.In a comparison with VA controls, COVID-19 survivors had a 63% higher hazard of any cardiovascular outcome through 12 months. Hazards were also higher for heart failure, atrial fibrillation, heart attack and stroke.
Absolute event rates for this comparison are not available in this summary, and the study design is not recorded. The comparison with VA controls shows associations, not proof that infection caused each outcome.A systematic review estimated brain fog prevalence at 30% and cognitive impairment prevalence at 25% in Long COVID populations.
Both pooled prevalence estimates come from one systematic review of Long COVID populations. Definitions and contributing populations are not detailed in this summary.With breathless Long COVID, >90% of measured lung-function values were normal despite lower scores than controls. In a never-hospitalized subgroup, 14/109 (~13%) had a low lung gas-transfer measure (TLCO) and reduced xenon-MRI gas-exchange metrics.
The >90% describes measured values, not people; details of the controls are not available in this summary. The subgroup had otherwise unexplained breathlessness, and a pulmonary contribution was described as only potential.In the study, persistent immune dysfunction was detected in 60% of Long COVID patients.
The finding was detectable at 6-12 months post-infection in the study's Long COVID patients. The sample and definition of immune dysfunction are not available, so broader applicability cannot be assessed.Versus no Omicron-adapted vaccination, reported effectiveness ranged 16.6% to 67.8% for COVID-19 hospitalization and 26.6% to 75.2% for all-cause mortality. A myocarditis incidence signal was also reported.
Rapid review of adults who were neither pregnant nor immunocompromised. The myocarditis signal involved adults aged 50 years or older. Its uncertainty range was wide and included no increase; its reference group and absolute rate are unavailable here.A systematic review and meta-analysis of 52 cohort studies estimated pooled pediatric Long COVID prevalence at 18.1%. Estimates changed with the definition used.
The pooled estimate came from pediatric cohorts; definition-specific estimates ranged from 16.2% to 21.6%, showing how the chosen definition affected the result.An interim test-negative study in adults reported effectiveness of 2025-2026 COVID-19 Vaccines against COVID-19-associated hospitalization, including among adults aged 65+.
Neither the comparator for recipients of 2025-2026 COVID-19 Vaccines nor the follow-up period is available in this summary, so the effectiveness percentages are not featured.View the full specialty index →
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Among adults on included immunosuppressive therapies, pooled hospitalization effectiveness versus no vaccination was 88.4%. Versus vaccinated healthy adults, vaccinated patients had higher infection, hospitalization and death risks.
The systematic review and meta-analysis excluded organ transplant recipients, and heterogeneity was high for all comparisons summarized here.
Stadler, Eva et al.. COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness in people on immunosuppressive therapies: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. The Lancet. Microbe. 2026.
Pooled vaccine effectiveness versus no vaccination against hospitalisation among adults receiving included immunosuppressive therapies; organ transplant recipients were excluded and heterogeneity was high (I²=73.9%).
88.4%
95% CI: 82.8%-92.3%
Risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection among vaccinated adults receiving included immunosuppressive therapies compared with vaccinated healthy individuals; heterogeneity was high (I²=89.7%).
RR 1.57
95% CI: 1.25-1.96
Risk of hospitalisation among vaccinated adults receiving included immunosuppressive therapies compared with vaccinated healthy individuals; heterogeneity was high (I²=85.5%).
RR 3.72
95% CI: 1.63-8.47
Risk of death among vaccinated adults receiving included immunosuppressive therapies compared with vaccinated healthy individuals; heterogeneity was high (I²=75.2%).
RR 3.14
95% CI: 1.51-6.54
At 4-6 weeks, clinician-documented persistent symptoms did not clearly differ among children after RSV, SARS-CoV-2, or influenza infection confirmed by PCR testing.
In this retrospective cohort, age patterns differed: prevalence was highest after RSV among infants and after SARS-CoV-2 among school-aged children. The overall result does not prove equivalence.
Bedir, Firat et al.. Post-acute symptom persistence following SARS-CoV-2, RSV, and influenza in children: A retrospective cohort study.. Medicine. 2026.
Clinician-documented persistent symptoms 4-6 weeks after PCR-confirmed infection in children; overall prevalence did not differ significantly among the three viruses.
RSV 24.0%; SARS-CoV-2 22.0%; influenza 21.2% (P = .086)
95% CI: RSV 22.2-25.8%; SARS-CoV-2 19.9-24.1%; influenza 19.4-23.0%
Significant virus-by-age interaction in post-acute symptom persistence, with the highest prevalence after RSV among infants and after SARS-CoV-2 among school-aged children.
P < .001
Adjusted association between hospitalization and persistent symptoms following pediatric SARS-CoV-2 infection.
aOR 1.9
95% CI: 1.4-2.6
Adjusted association between hypoxemia and persistent symptoms following pediatric RSV infection.
aOR 2.4
95% CI: 1.7-3.3
Adjusted association between age over 6 years and persistent symptoms following pediatric SARS-CoV-2 infection.
aOR 2.1
95% CI: 1.5-2.9
In a 797-participant Malaysian survey, 42.4% of manufacturing workers with Long COVID were working while ill (sickness presenteeism), and 24.7% had poor work-related quality of life.
Absence of a sickness-absence policy was associated with higher odds of adverse work outcomes, while informing employers about a Long COVID symptom was described as protective. Reference groups and the outcome definition are unavailable here; survey associations do not establish policy effects.
Mohd Yusoff, Hanizah et al.. Prevalence and risk factors of adverse work outcomes among manufacturing workers with Long COVID in Malaysia - A nationwide study.. PloS one. 2026.
Workers with Long COVID who experienced sickness presenteeism
42.4%
Workers with Long COVID who had poor work-related quality of life in the 797-participant manufacturing-worker survey
24.7%
Adjusted association between informing employers about a Long COVID symptom and adverse work outcomes; the authors described this as protective
aOR 0.32
Adjusted association between absence of a sickness-absence policy and adverse work outcomes among workers with Long COVID
aOR 2.77
Among hospitalized children at centers using systematic multiplex PCR testing, respiratory viral coinfection was not clearly associated with severe COVID-19.
The reference group for the adjusted comparison is not available in this summary. The result does not prove that coinfection has no effect or that groups were equivalent.
Di Chiara, Costanza et al.. SARS-CoV-2 Coinfections and Severity in Hospitalized Children With Systematic Testing.. The Pediatric infectious disease journal. 2026.
Respiratory viral coinfection was not associated with increased odds of severe COVID-19 among hospitalized children at centers with systematic multiplex PCR testing.
aOR 0.94
95% CI: 0.76-1.15
Dates show when findings were added here, not when papers were published. Study populations and comparisons differ.
THE LONGER VIEWStart with the questions that reach across specialties. The Long COVID guide brings its research and cited sources into one place.
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PloS one
Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
Journal of pediatric rehabilitation medicine
Clinical and investigative medicine. Medecine clinique et experimentale
The Medical journal of Australia
BJPsych open
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