Study finds economically disadvantaged patients at greater risk for long COVID

A prospective observational cohort study determined the associations between social determinants of health (SDoH) at the time of SARS-CoV-2 infection and subsequent risk for long COVID. The study found that people with social risk factors including economic instability and food insecurity at the time of COVID-19 infection were at greater risk for long COVID.

The results suggest policy efforts are essential to dismantle the systemic drivers of social risk factors and address the disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and colleagues studied data from 3,787 adults enrolled in the RECOVER-Adult study between October 2021 and November 2023 who had acute SARS-CoV-2 infection with the omicron variant. Participants completed comorbidity and SDoH surveys at baseline and long COVID symptom surveys at six‐month follow‐up.

The researchers used the Healthy People 2030 categorizations for SDoH to consider four domains of individual‐level social risk factors (economic instability, education and language access barriers, health care access and quality challenges, and lack of social or community support) and two area‐level measures from ZIP code data (neighborhood poverty and household crowding).

The outcome measured was meeting the criteria for likely long COVID from the 2024 update of the RECOVER-Adult Long COVID Research Index (LCRI) based on the six‐month patient‐reported symptom survey.

The researchers found that persons with financial hardship, food insecurity, less than a college education, and health care access challenges were at higher risk of developing long COVID. Living in a ZIP code with higher household crowding was also associated with a greater risk of long COVID.

Secondary analyses found that a greater number of social risk factors within most domains conferred higher risk for long COVID. The findings show the lasting contribution of social risk factors to the disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A prospective observational cohort study determined the associations between social determinants of health (SDoH) at the time of SARS-CoV-2 infection and subsequent risk for long COVID. The study found that people with social risk factors including economic instability and food insecurity at the time of COVID-19 infection were at greater risk for long COVID.

The results suggest policy efforts are essential to dismantle the systemic drivers of social risk factors and address the disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and colleagues studied data from 3,787 adults enrolled in the RECOVER-Adult study between October 2021 and November 2023 who had acute SARS-CoV-2 infection with the omicron variant. Participants completed comorbidity and SDoH surveys at baseline and long COVID symptom surveys at six‐month follow‐up.

The researchers used the Healthy People 2030 categorizations for SDoH to consider four domains of individual‐level social risk factors (economic instability, education and language access barriers, health care access and quality challenges, and lack of social or community support) and two area‐level measures from ZIP code data (neighborhood poverty and household crowding).

The outcome measured was meeting the criteria for likely long COVID from the 2024 update of the RECOVER-Adult Long COVID Research Index (LCRI) based on the six‐month patient‐reported symptom survey.

The researchers found that persons with financial hardship, food insecurity, less than a college education, and health care access challenges were at higher risk of developing long COVID. Living in a ZIP code with higher household crowding was also associated with a greater risk of long COVID.

Secondary analyses found that a greater number of social risk factors within most domains conferred higher risk for long COVID. The findings show the lasting contribution of social risk factors to the disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.