COVID-19 / THE SPECIALTY COLLECTION

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Long COVID

1 in 12 US adultshave ever had long COVID, per a 2024 national survey

About 1 in 12 American adults say they have had long COVID.

In a national CDC household survey, 8.3% of US adults said in 2024 that they had ever had long COVID, meaning new symptoms lasting 3 months or longer after COVID-19. That share rose from 7.0% in 2022, then leveled off. About 3.3% still had symptoms. Of those, 19.8%, roughly 1 in 5, said long COVID limited their daily activities a lot.

Long COVID has not faded from American life. A steady share of adults still live with it, and it was reported more often by women, middle-aged adults and people with lower incomes, groups that may need targeted support. This is a self-reported survey snapshot, so long COVID was not confirmed by doctors and the survey cannot show what caused it.

37 cited sourcesSource

Cardiology

Nearly 1 in 2seniors hospitalized with COVID who died or had a heart or clot event within a year

Seniors hospitalized with COVID fared worse within a year than flu patients.

Among more than a million Medicare patients (average age 79), 48.8% of those hospitalized with COVID in the Omicron era died or were hospitalized again for a heart attack, stroke, blood clot, heart failure or cardiac arrest within a year. After a flu hospitalization, the figure was 33.4%. Compared with earlier COVID waves, deaths fell, but heart attacks, strokes, clots and heart failure rose.

Omicron is often called mild. But for older adults sick enough to be hospitalized, the following year brought a heavy load of heart and clot problems. Heart-protective follow-up after discharge matters. This was an observational study of Medicare records, so it shows links, not proof that COVID itself caused the extra heart events.

11 cited sourcesSource

Neurology

71 more per 1,000Extra people per 1,000 with a new neurologic diagnosis in the year after COVID-19

COVID-19 was linked to more brain and nerve disorders a year later.

Among US veterans who survived the first month of COVID-19, about 71 more per 1,000 had a new neurologic diagnosis within a year than uninfected veterans from the same period. Problems ranged from stroke and memory trouble to seizures, nerve damage and Guillain-Barré syndrome. Risks rose even in people never hospitalized.

With so many Americans infected, a few dozen extra cases per 1,000 people adds up to a very large number with stroke, memory or nerve problems, and the risk was not limited to the very sick. Based on health records of mostly white male veterans, so results may differ for women and other groups, and the links do not prove COVID-19 was the cause.

13 cited sourcesSource

Pulmonology

About 1 in 36 sparedPer 36 hospital patients given dexamethasone, about 1 more was alive at 28 days

Steroid dexamethasone lowered COVID deaths, most among ventilated patients.

In a large UK randomized trial of people hospitalized with COVID-19, 22.9% of those given the steroid dexamethasone died within 28 days, versus 25.7% of those given usual care. The gain was largest for patients on a breathing machine (29.3% vs 41.4% died). Patients who needed no extra oxygen saw no clear benefit (17.8% vs 14.0%).

The trial showed that calming the body's inflammatory response saves lives once COVID pneumonia is starving patients of oxygen. It also showed timing matters: patients who did not yet need oxygen did not benefit. Open-label trial (everyone knew who got the drug) run in early 2020, before vaccines and other treatments changed who ends up in hospital.

10 cited sourcesSource

Immunology

1 in 5 COVID deathsShare of fatal COVID-19 cases linked to antibodies that disable interferon

Self-attacking antibodies against interferon appear in 18% of COVID deaths.

Interferons are the body's first alarm against viruses. Some people carry autoantibodies, antibodies aimed at their own proteins, that switch this alarm off. They were found in 18% of 1,124 people who died of COVID-19. Among uninfected people, they appeared in 1% of those under 70 but 6.3% of those over 80.

The antibodies were present before infection, not triggered by it, and grow more common with age. That helps explain why some older adults become so much sicker, and suggests a blood test could one day flag who most needs early treatment. The study links these antibodies to fatal COVID-19 and estimates their share of deaths, but it cannot prove they caused any individual death.

6 cited sourcesSource

Vaccinology

55% lower oddsCOVID hospitalization odds with the 2025-2026 shot vs no shot this season, US adults

The 2025-2026 shot was linked to 55% lower COVID hospitalization odds.

In US adults with healthy immune systems seen for COVID-like illness from September to December 2025, getting the 2025-2026 shot was linked to 55% lower odds of COVID hospitalization compared with skipping this season's dose, regardless of earlier shots. Effectiveness was 53% in people 65 and older and 50% against emergency or urgent care visits.

Nearly everyone now has some immunity from past shots or infections, so the real question was whether a fresh shot still adds anything. This early look says it does, for younger and older adults alike. Early observational estimate in adults with healthy immune systems in 7 states, measured soon after vaccination, so it cannot show how long protection lasts or prove cause.

29 cited sourcesSource

Pediatrics

1 in 5 needed the ICUOf babies under 6 months hospitalized with COVID, not counting birth stays

Young infants have COVID hospital rates rivaling older adults, often needing ICU.

From October 2022 to April 2024, CDC surveillance counted 1,470 COVID hospital stays among US babies under 6 months, who are too young for vaccines. Their hospitalization rates topped every other age group except adults 75 and older. Of babies hospitalized after their birth stay, 22.1% went to intensive care and nine died.

Many parents think COVID is mild for every child. For the youngest babies, the hospital risk looks more like a grandparent's, and these infants depend on protection from others, including antibodies passed on during pregnancy. This surveillance covers selected US counties and counts only hospitalized babies, so it cannot show how often infected infants overall become seriously ill.

15 cited sourcesSource

Public Health

1.87 years lostDrop in US life expectancy, 2019 to 2020, vs 0.58 years on average in 21 peer nations

US life expectancy fell far more in 2020 than in peer nations.

Using official death counts, researchers found US life expectancy at birth fell 1.87 years from 2019 to 2020. Across 21 other high-income countries the average drop was 0.58 years, and none fell as far as the US. Hispanic Americans lost 3.70 years and Black Americans 3.22 years, far more than White Americans.

Life expectancy sums up a whole population's health in one number. The 2020 drop widened an existing gap between the US and other rich countries, and it fell hardest on Hispanic and Black communities. This covers only 2020; later federal data show US life expectancy has since rebounded above its pre-pandemic level.

15 cited sourcesSource

Allergy

99.84% tolerated dose 2Pooled share with no severe reaction to dose 2 after an immediate reaction to dose 1

After an allergic reaction to a first dose, severe repeats were rare.

Among people who had an immediate allergic reaction to a first mRNA COVID shot, 99.84% got through the second dose without a severe reaction, though 13.65% had mild symptoms. Among those whose first reaction was severe, 4.94% had another severe one. Skin testing, split dosing and premedication (medicine taken beforehand) did not change the results.

A frightening first-dose reaction usually did not make the next dose dangerous. That matters for anyone told to stop vaccinating after one reaction, and it suggests routine allergy tests add little to the decision. Pooled case series and case reports, mostly in women; certainty was moderate overall but low for people whose first reaction was severe.

8 cited sourcesSource

Autonomic/POTS

4.9× higher ME/CFS riskHazard ratio for new ME/CFS after infection vs matched uninfected adults

ME/CFS developed far more often after COVID than without infection.

In a large US study of adults not hospitalized for COVID, 4.5% of infected people met criteria for ME/CFS, a disabling fatigue illness, versus 0.6% of uninfected people. Tracked from infection, their rate of new ME/CFS was 4.93 times that of matched uninfected adults (hazard ratio). Crashes after even small effort (post-exertional malaise) were the top symptom, reported by 24.0% of infected people.

Because COVID infections are so widespread, even a modest rise in risk could mean many new people living with ME/CFS. Knowing that crashes after effort are its hallmark helps people and doctors recognize it. Observational study based on self-reported symptoms, which can wax and wane, so it cannot prove COVID caused ME/CFS.

8 cited sourcesSource

Biomarkers

None of 25 lab testsRoutine lab values did not differ between long COVID and full recovery

None of 25 routine lab tests could identify long COVID.

Among adults who had COVID-19, those with long COVID (a high score on the study's symptom index) had average routine lab results no different from infected people with a symptom score of zero. None of the 25 lab values studied worked as a useful marker of long COVID.

A normal routine lab panel cannot rule long COVID out, and standard blood work cannot confirm it either. People with real, lasting symptoms may still have normal results. Observational study of 10,094 adults at 83 sites, with labs taken about 6 months after infection; it could not tell whether lab differences were causes or results of infection.

12 cited sourcesSource

Dermatology

1 in 5 had only a rash21% of COVID-positive survey respondents with a rash had no other symptom

For some people, a skin rash was the only sign of COVID-19.

Among UK users of a COVID symptom app, 8.8% of those who tested positive reported skin changes, and rashes were linked to a positive swab (odds ratio 1.67, meaning higher odds). In a separate online survey of people with rashes who tested positive, 17% said the rash came first and 21% said it was the only sign of COVID-19.

A new rash, even without fever or cough, can be an early clue to COVID-19. Skin signs may flag infections that standard symptom checklists would miss. Self-reported app and online-survey data from the UK in 2020, mostly from white users; survey respondents chose to report their rashes.

9 cited sourcesSource

Economics

7 of 60 pointsPoints of a 60-point drop in business visits explained by legal shutdown orders

Shutdown orders explained little of 2020's plunge in customer visits.

Cell-phone data showed customer visits to businesses fell by 60 percentage points early in the pandemic. Comparing similar shops on opposite sides of county lines with different rules, legal shutdown orders explained only about 7 of those points. Visits dropped before orders began and tracked local COVID deaths; the authors say people's choices seem tied to fear of infection.

Government orders were not the main brake on the economy. People pulled back on their own when they feared catching the virus, so lifting rules alone could not bring customers back. Measures phone-tracked visits from March to mid-May 2020, not spending or online purchases; the fear link rests on patterns, not proof.

13 cited sourcesSource

Endocrinology

13.46 extra per 1000more new diabetes cases in a year in US veterans after COVID-19 vs uninfected peers

Veterans who survived COVID-19 were more likely to develop diabetes.

Among US veterans who survived the early weeks of COVID-19, the risk of a new diabetes diagnosis over the next year was 1.4 times that of uninfected veterans (hazard ratio 1.40), or 13.46 extra cases per 1000 people. The risk rose with how sick people got and appeared even in those at the lowest starting risk.

Diabetes is lifelong and raises risks for heart, kidney and eye disease, so even a modest bump across millions of infections adds up. The findings support checking for diabetes after COVID-19, especially after severe illness. Infections happened before Omicron and mostly before vaccines, in mostly older male veterans; Omicron-era studies find a much smaller link.

12 cited sourcesSource

Epidemiology

94% of Americansestimated infected with the virus at least once by November 2022; 65% more than once

By late 2022, nearly every American had caught COVID-19 at least once.

A national model of US case, hospitalization and vaccination data estimated that by November 2022, 94% of people in the US had been infected at least once and 65% more than once. From December 2021 to November 2022 alone, it estimated 209 million reinfections versus 116 million first infections.

Reinfection, not first infection, became the usual way Americans met the virus. The authors note that waning immunity or a new variant could still fuel fresh waves despite this widespread exposure. These are model estimates built from reported data and assumptions, with wide uncertainty (79% to 99% ever infected), not antibody tests of every person.

17 cited sourcesSource

Gastroenterology

35% higher reflux riskHazard ratio, new reflux disease after COVID vs uninfected veterans

COVID survivors were more likely to develop new reflux, ulcers and pancreatitis.

Among US veterans who survived the first 30 days of COVID-19, new acid reflux disease (GERD) was diagnosed at a 35% higher rate over the following year than in veterans without COVID. That is about 15.5 extra cases per 1,000 people. Peptic ulcers, acute pancreatitis and irritable bowel syndrome were also more common.

The higher risks showed up even in people never hospitalized for COVID, the group that includes most infected people. New heartburn, belly pain or bowel changes after an infection deserve attention. This observational study of US veterans infected early in the pandemic cannot prove COVID caused these problems, and vaccines and newer variants may have changed the risk since.

10 cited sourcesSource

Genetics

About 50% in South Asiacarry the Neanderthal DNA linked to the top inherited risk; about 16% in Europe

The biggest inherited risk for severe COVID came from Neanderthals

Genetic studies comparing hospitalized COVID patients with controls found one stretch of DNA to be the major genetic risk factor for severe illness. This study traced that segment to Neanderthals, an extinct group of ancient humans whose DNA lives on in many people today. Around 50% of people in South Asia and around 16% of people in Europe carry it.

Part of why COVID hits some people harder may lie in ancient DNA, not just health or habits, and families with South Asian roots are especially likely to carry this stretch. A short genetic analysis of existing patient data and ancient genomes; it shows where the risk DNA came from and how common it is, not any one carrier's chance of severe illness.

9 cited sourcesSource

Geriatrics

1 in 7 at age 85From the estimated 15% infection fatality rate at age 85, pooled 2020 data

COVID-19 death risk climbed from 1.4% at 65 to 15% at 85.

Researchers pooled antibody surveys and contact-tracing data to estimate the infection fatality rate: the share of all infected people, including mild and undiagnosed cases, who died. It rose exponentially with age: 0.4% at 55, 1.4% at 65, 4.6% at 75 and 15% at 85, topping 25% at 90 and older.

Age, more than anything else, set the danger. An infection that barely threatened a teenager could kill a great-grandparent, so shielding the oldest from infection could cut total deaths substantially. These pooled estimates come from 2020, before vaccines or effective treatments existed, so they describe the pandemic's first year, not today.

10 cited sourcesSource

Hematology

Omicron: no extra clotsClot risk after COVID-19 matched other respiratory infections, May 2022 to Nov 2024

Since mid-2022, COVID-19's clot risk has matched other respiratory infections

Across the pandemic, US adults with COVID-19 had higher odds of a leg or lung clot within a month than adults with other respiratory infections (odds ratio 1.45). But in the Contemporary Omicron period, May 2022 to Nov 2024, risk was similar between the groups, especially among vaccinated people. Vaccination was linked to lower odds of clots (odds ratio 0.41).

The alarming clot risks reported early in the pandemic may not describe a typical COVID-19 infection today, especially in vaccinated people. That reshapes how worried most people should be about clots after a recent case. Observational health-record study that cannot prove cause; it compared COVID-19 with other respiratory infections rather than with uninfected people, and coded diagnoses can miss clots.

11 cited sourcesSource

Hepatology

17.4 vs 13.4 expected2021 death rate per 100,000 with alcohol-related liver disease, vs predicted

Deaths with alcohol-related liver disease soared above trend during the pandemic.

Deaths among people with alcohol-related liver disease were rising 3.5% a year in 2010-2019, then 17.6% a year in 2020-2021. By 2021 the age-adjusted death rate was 17.42 per 100,000, against 13.41 predicted from the earlier trend. The steepest climb hit adults aged 25-44: 34.6% a year.

It means the pandemic hurt livers in ways beyond the virus itself, and the sharpest rise came among young adults, a group with many years of life at stake. Observational analysis of US death records through 2021; the authors say much of the rise was not directly due to COVID infection, and the data cannot show why deaths rose.

9 cited sourcesSource

Infectious Disease

0.3× the COVID riskRisk ratio vs. placebo for household contacts who took ensitrelvir after exposure

A new antiviral pill cut COVID cases among exposed household members.

In a randomized trial, people who lived with someone newly sick with COVID, but tested negative themselves, took either ensitrelvir (a pill that blocks a key virus enzyme) or a placebo (dummy pill). They started within 72 hours of the sick person's first symptoms. By day 10, 2.9% of the pill group had COVID with symptoms, compared with 9.0% of the placebo group.

Before this trial, no antiviral was approved to prevent COVID after a household exposure. Side effects were about as common as with placebo (15.1% vs. 15.5%), and no COVID hospitalizations were reported. Researchers see a possible new prevention tool for homes. Ensitrelvir is approved for treatment in Japan but not in the US, and the trial was funded by its maker, Shionogi.

16 cited sourcesSource

ME/CFS

1 in 22 infected adults4.5% of infected adults met ME/CFS criteria, vs 0.6% of uninfected adults

About 1 in 22 infected adults met ME/CFS criteria months later.

In the US RECOVER study, 4.5% of adults infected with COVID met ME/CFS criteria months later, versus 0.6% of adults never infected. Compared with matched uninfected people, infection was linked to a hazard ratio of 4.93, about 4.9 times the rate of new ME/CFS. Post-exertional malaise, a crash after even small effort, was the most common symptom, reported by 24.0% of infected people.

With so many Americans infected, even a few percent adds up to a large number of people facing a long, disabling illness, and the crash after effort is the clue to watch for. Observational study using self-reported symptoms that can wax and wane; hospitalized patients were excluded, the 4.93 figure is a hazard ratio, and it cannot prove COVID caused each case.

9 cited sourcesSource

Nephrology

7.7× kidney failureHazard ratio for kidney failure after a COVID-19 hospital stay vs. matched people

Severe COVID-19 was linked to kidney failure, even in the Omicron era.

In England, adults hospitalized with COVID-19 had 7.7 times the hazard of kidney failure (needing dialysis or a transplant, or near-total loss of function) compared with matched people without COVID-19, and the excess lasted beyond 180 days. The risk was as high in the Omicron wave as in the first wave. People with COVID-19 who were not hospitalized showed no increased risk.

The authors urge kidney checks after any COVID-19 hospital discharge and better prevention of severe illness in vulnerable groups. The link was stronger in Black adults (hazard ratio 4.50) than in white adults (1.82). Observational English records study; risk was highest in the first month, and it cannot show whether COVID-19 itself or severe illness in general caused the damage.

12 cited sourcesSource

Occupational Health

7 points less likelyto still be in the labor force a year after a week-long COVID absence

Missing a week for COVID was linked to leaving the workforce.

In US labor-survey data, workers who missed a full week for probable COVID were 7 percentage points less likely to be in the labor force (working or job-hunting) a year later than similar workers without a health absence, partly as older workers retired. The authors estimate about 500,000 fewer US workers and a loss worth at least $9,000 in earnings per absence.

Even a short illness can echo for a year in a worker's paycheck and career. Across many infections, that adds up to a smaller workforce for employers and less income for families. Uses week-long health absences as a stand-in for COVID through June 2022; an observational event study that compares similar workers but cannot fully prove cause.

16 cited sourcesSource

Oncology

74% higher odds of deathUS adults with COVID on recent cancer treatment vs those without cancer (odds ratio)

Recent cancer treatment, not past cancer, was linked to higher COVID deaths.

Among over half a million US adults with COVID-19, 7.8% of those who had radiation or drug therapy for cancer in the prior 3 months died, vs 5.0% of cancer patients without recent treatment and 1.6% of people without cancer. After adjustment, recent treatment meant 74% higher odds of death; patients without recent treatment fared similar to or better than people without cancer.

The danger tracked active treatment more than a cancer label, so people in treatment needed the most protection, while many survivors who had finished therapy faced risks closer to everyone else's. This health-record study from 2020, before vaccines, shows links rather than causes; patients getting treatment may have been sicker in ways the data missed.

10 cited sourcesSource

Ophthalmology

1 in 7 died14% mortality at final follow-up in COVID-linked black fungus of nose and eye

1 in 7 Indian patients with COVID-linked black fungus died.

Among people in India with COVID-19-linked mucormycosis ('black fungus') spreading from the nose and sinuses toward the eye socket and brain, 14% had died by final follow-up. 87% had been given corticosteroid (steroid) drugs for COVID-19, and most had diabetes. Surgeons removed the eye and eye-socket contents in 15%, and did so along with sinus surgery in 17%.

Diabetes plus steroid treatment emerged as the dangerous mix. This fungus can take an eye or a life, so new face or eye pain, swelling or vision loss during or after COVID-19 needs urgent care. A retrospective review of treated cases with no comparison group, so it describes who was affected rather than measuring how much each factor raised risk.

8 cited sourcesSource

Otolaryngology (ENT)

60.5% lost smellOf US adults diagnosed with COVID-19 by 2021, in a nationally representative survey

Most US adults with COVID-19 in 2021 reported losing smell or taste.

In a 2021 national survey weighted to represent US adults, 14% had been diagnosed with COVID-19. Of those, 60.5% reported losing smell and 58.2% losing taste. Smell came back fully for 72.2% and partly for 24.1%, while 3.7% reported no smell recovery. People with more severe overall COVID-19 symptoms were less likely to recover.

Losing smell or taste was the usual experience for people diagnosed in 2021, not a rare quirk. Most recover, but even a small share of millions of infected adults is a large group still living without full smell. Answers came from a self-reported national survey (2021 National Health Interview Survey), so smell loss and recovery were not confirmed with smell tests.

11 cited sourcesSource

Pain Medicine

40 more per 1,000Extra muscle/joint disorders per 1,000 at 12 months vs uninfected veterans

A year after COVID-19, veterans had more new joint and muscle pain.

Veterans who survived COVID-19 had about 40 more new muscle or joint disorders, mostly joint and muscle pain, per 1,000 people over 12 months than uninfected veterans. That included an 83% higher risk of new muscle pain (hazard ratio 1.83). Migraine, headache disorders and nerve problems also rose, even in people never hospitalized.

New aches after COVID-19 stood out clearly against millions of uninfected people, and not only after severe illness, so lingering joint or muscle pain after infection is a recognized pattern worth raising with a doctor. Observational records study of mostly White male veterans, so it cannot prove COVID-19 caused the pain and may apply less to women.

8 cited sourcesSource

Pathology

95% judged COVID deathsdefinite, probable or possible COVID-19 deaths among people autopsied; 5% were not

Autopsies judged almost all deaths with the virus to be COVID deaths.

Pathologists autopsied everyone in one region who died with the virus. They classed 95% as COVID-19 deaths (definite, probable or possible); only 5% were not. In six people, the infection was found only by a swab taken after death. Deep vein thrombosis, meaning blood clots in deep veins, turned up in 40%.

It answers the claim that people died 'with' COVID rather than 'from' it: when pathologists looked directly, the virus was judged a cause in almost every case, and some infections surfaced only after death. Early-pandemic autopsies in Hamburg, Germany, of people aged 52 to 96, nearly all with serious prior illnesses; 'possible' cases had an equally likely other cause.

9 cited sourcesSource

Pharmacology

39% vs 15% diedDeaths by day 13 on high-dose vs low-dose chloroquine in hospitalized severe COVID-19

More deaths on high-dose chloroquine than on a lower dose

Adults hospitalized with severe COVID-19 in Manaus, Brazil were randomly given a high or low dose of chloroquine on top of usual care. By day 13, 39.0% (16 of 41) on the high dose had died, versus 15.0% (6 of 40) on the low dose. A QTc over 500 milliseconds — a stretched electrical reset of the heart — was also more common on the high dose (18.9% vs 11.1%).

Chloroquine was promoted worldwide in 2020 as a COVID-19 cure. Its safety board halted this trial early: pushing the dose higher did not rescue very sick patients, and the high-dose group had more deaths and more dangerous heart tracings. A small randomized trial — 81 of a planned 440 patients — at one Brazilian hospital in March–April 2020; there was no untreated comparison group, the high-dose group was older with more heart disease, and everyone also received azithromycin.

11 cited sourcesSource

Psychiatry

43 daysUntil extra mood-disorder risk after COVID matched that after other infections

Mood-disorder risk after COVID faded fast; psychosis risk lingered 2 years.

Among more than a million people diagnosed with COVID-19, compared with matched people who had other respiratory infections, the extra risk of a new mood disorder such as depression faded after 43 days, and of anxiety after 58 days. But psychotic disorders, dementia and 'brain fog' (trouble thinking clearly) were still being diagnosed more often after COVID at the end of 2 years.

The feared wave of lasting depression after infection looks short-lived when COVID is compared with other chest infections. The longer-lasting signal is for rarer brain-related diagnoses such as psychosis and dementia, which deserve close follow-up. This used health records, mostly from the USA, through April 2022, so it relies on recorded diagnoses and cannot prove cause; a VA study comparing with uninfected people did find more depression.

13 cited sourcesSource

Radiology

61% vs 27%Abnormalities in two or more organs on MRI: hospital survivors vs community controls

Hospital COVID survivors had more multi-organ MRI abnormalities than controls.

About 5 months after leaving hospital, 61% of COVID-19 patients had MRI abnormalities in more than one organ, vs 27% of community controls with no evidence of previous COVID-19. The excess was in the lungs, brain and kidneys (renal). Heart (cardiac) and liver scans looked similar in both groups.

COVID serious enough to need a hospital stay can leave marks across several organs months later, not just in the lungs. That argues for follow-up care that looks beyond the chest. Observational study; patients were older and had more obesity and more other illnesses than the 52 controls, so it cannot prove COVID caused the differences.

8 cited sourcesSource

Rehabilitation

Better at 12 monthsQuality of life vs a single advice session, after weekly online group rehab

Online group rehab after hospital improved quality of life for a year.

585 adults with long COVID, at least three months after a COVID hospital stay, were randomly assigned to eight weeks of live online group exercise and psychological support sessions, or to a single online advice session (usual care). The group programme improved health-related quality of life more than usual care at three and 12 months.

A programme people join from home, in live online groups, helped hospital survivors with long COVID feel better for a full year, showing that rehab can reach people at scale without a clinic visit. Randomized trial in England and Wales that enrolled only people previously hospitalized with COVID; participants knew which group they were in and rated their own quality of life.

14 cited sourcesSource

Reproductive Health

1.9× stillbirth riskAdjusted relative risk, US deliveries with vs without COVID, 2020–2021

Stillbirth was nearly twice as common when mothers had COVID at delivery.

In a large US hospital database, 1.26% of deliveries with COVID recorded during the delivery stay ended in stillbirth (a baby dying before birth), versus 0.64% of deliveries without COVID. During the Delta wave, the gap widened to 2.70% versus 0.63%.

Stillbirth stayed rare, but COVID around delivery was tied to a clear rise in it. The link was strongest when the Delta variant dominated, before most pregnant women were vaccinated. Hospital billing records show a link, not proof of cause, and a later analysis of the same US database found no clear rise in stillbirth during the Omicron waves.

12 cited sourcesSource

Research Methodology

88% not confirmedOf 32 non-randomized studies finding survival benefit, share big trials didn't confirm

Most non-randomized studies showing COVID drug survival benefits were not confirmed.

Of 32 non-randomized studies (no random assignment) linking a COVID drug to better survival, large randomized trials failed to confirm 28. Only 2 of 29 randomized trials found a survival benefit, both for corticosteroids (steroid drugs). Just 8% of 104 non-randomized studies corrected for immortal time bias, a timing error that flatters treatments.

In a crisis, promising-looking studies spread fast. Most early 'this drug saves lives' claims collapsed under fair testing, which is why randomized trials, not early impressions, are the test a treatment must pass. A cross-sectional review of studies published during 2020 that reported deaths; it shows how often early findings held up, not why each drug failed.

13 cited sourcesSource

Rheumatology

25% higher riskof new autoimmune rheumatic disease after COVID vs no infection (hazard ratio)

COVID was linked to new autoimmune rheumatic diseases, more than flu.

Among Korean adults, people who had COVID had a 25% higher risk (hazard ratio 1.25) of a new autoimmune rheumatic disease diagnosis beyond the first 30 days than matched uninfected people. Their risk was also 30% higher than in people who had flu. Risk was higher when COVID was more severe, and Japanese data showed similar patterns.

COVID was linked to more new cases than flu, hinting it may affect the immune system in a distinct way. New joint pain, rashes or dry eyes after COVID are worth mentioning to a doctor. An insurance-claims study, so diagnoses rely on billing codes and pandemic-era doctor visits; it shows a link, not proof that COVID causes these diseases.

9 cited sourcesSource

Sleep Medicine

33% higher riskNew sleep apnea, non-hospitalized COVID vs. COVID-negative (hazard ratio)

COVID, even without a hospital stay, was linked to new sleep apnea.

Among 910,393 adults tested for COVID in a Bronx health system, those who tested positive but were not hospitalized had a 33% higher risk of a new obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis (the airway repeatedly collapsing in sleep) than those who tested negative. For hospitalized patients the risk was 41% higher. Vaccinated and unvaccinated patients had similar risk.

If COVID can trigger or unmask sleep apnea, lingering tiredness or poor sleep after an infection, even one that never needed a hospital, could have a treatable cause that is easy to miss. Observational records from one Bronx health system, so it cannot prove cause; diagnoses came from charts, not sleep tests, and closer checkups after COVID may explain some cases.

8 cited sourcesSource

Sports Medicine

387 cases, no increaseCardiac arrests and deaths in young US athletes: 203 before the pandemic, 184 during

Young athletes' sudden cardiac arrests did not rise during the pandemic.

Researchers counted sudden cardiac arrests and deaths among young competitive athletes in the US. There were 203 cases before the pandemic and 184 during it, not a significant difference. Myocarditis (heart inflammation) was the confirmed cause of death in 3 cases before and 4 during the pandemic.

Online claims said COVID or vaccines were making young athletes collapse. This national count does not support them. Cardiac arrest in young athletes still happens and still needs better prevention. Observational count from records and reports; some cases may have been missed, sports participation shifted during the pandemic, and causes were often incomplete.

8 cited sourcesSource

Therapeutics

12.3 points fewer deathsPercentage-point drop in 28-day deaths among ventilated patients on dexamethasone

Dexamethasone, a steroid, cut deaths among the sickest COVID patients.

In a UK trial of patients hospitalized with COVID, those given dexamethasone, a steroid that tamps down inflammation, were less likely to die within 28 days than those on usual care. On breathing machines, 29.3% died with it vs 41.4% without. Patients on oxygen also benefited, but those needing no oxygen did not (17.8% vs 14.0%).

It showed that calming the body's own immune overreaction, not just attacking the virus, can save lives in severe COVID, and that the benefit depends on how sick a patient is when treatment starts. An open-label trial (doctors knew who got the drug) run in spring 2020, before vaccines or the Omicron variant.

14 cited sourcesSource

Vascular Medicine

Raised up to 49 weeksVein-clot and stroke rates stayed above normal through week 49 after COVID-19

Vein-clot and stroke risk spiked after COVID-19 and lingered almost a year.

In England and Wales, adults diagnosed with COVID-19 had 33.2 times the rate of a first vein clot in week 1 compared with people without a COVID-19 diagnosis, and 28.1 times the rate of ischemic stroke. In weeks 27 to 49, those rates were still 1.80 and 1.62 times higher. By week 49, the estimated extra risk was 0.25 percentage points for vein clots and 0.5 points for artery clots.

The first weeks after diagnosis carried by far the most danger, but the extra risk of clots and strokes faded slowly over the following months rather than ending with the illness. Observational study of 2020 records comparing rates (hazard ratios) with people without a COVID-19 diagnosis; it shows a link, not proof of cause.

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