Long COVID at Different Altitudes: A Countrywide Epidemiological Analysis

Juan S. Izquierdo-Condoy, Raul Fernandez-Naranjo, Eduardo Vasconez-González, Simone Cordovez, Andrea Tello- De-la-Torre, Clara Paz, Karen Delgado-Moreira, Sarah Carrington, Ginés Viscor and Esteban Ortiz-Prado ()
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Juan S. Izquierdo-Condoy: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Raul Fernandez-Naranjo: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Eduardo Vasconez-González: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Simone Cordovez: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Andrea Tello- De-la-Torre: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Clara Paz: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Karen Delgado-Moreira: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador
Ginés Viscor: Departament de Biologia Cel·lular, Fisiologia i Immunologia, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Esteban Ortiz-Prado: One Health Research Group, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad de Las Americas, Quito 170137, Ecuador

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 22, 1-20

Abstract: Background: Several reports from around the world have reported that some patients who have recovered from COVID-19 have experienced a range of persistent or new clinical symptoms after a SARS-CoV-2 infection. These symptoms can last from weeks to months, impacting everyday functioning to a significant number of patients. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis based on an online, self-reporting questionnaire was conducted in Ecuador from April to July 2022. Participants were invited by social media, radio, and TV to voluntarily participate in our study. A total of 2103 surveys were included in this study. We compared socio-demographic variables and long-term persisting symptoms at low (<2500 m) and high altitude (>2500 m). Results: Overall, 1100 (52.3%) responders claimed to have Long-COVID symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Most of these were reported by women (64.0%); the most affected group was young adults between 21 to 40 years (68.5%), and most long-haulers were mestizos (91.6%). We found that high altitude residents were more likely to report persisting symptoms (71.7%) versus those living at lower altitudes (29.3%). The most common symptoms were fatigue or tiredness (8.4%), hair loss (5.1%) and difficulty concentrating (5.0%). The highest proportion of symptoms was observed in the group that received less than 2 doses. Conclusions: This is the first study describing post-COVID symptoms’ persistence in low and high-altitude residents. Our findings demonstrate that women, especially those aging between 21–40, are more likely to describe Long-COVID. We also found that living at a high altitude was associated with higher reports of mood changes, tachycardia, decreased libido, insomnia, and palpitations compared to lowlanders. Finally, we found a greater risk to report Long-COVID symptoms among women, those with previous comorbidities and those who had a severer acute SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; long-COVID; sequalae; symptoms; Latin America; high altitude (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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