Introduction

Long COVID is a chronic condition that follows after acute COVID-19 and is characterized by a wide range of persistent, cyclic symptoms.

Sources of data

PubMed search for publications featuring ‘Long COVID’ or ‘post-acute sequelae of COVID-19’.

Areas of agreement

Long COVID occurs frequently post-acute COVID-19, with a majority of people experiencing at least one symptom (such as cough, fatigue, myalgia, anosmia and dyspnoea) 4 weeks after infection.

Areas of controversy

The specific symptoms and the minimum duration of symptoms required to be defined as Long COVID.

Growing points

There is a consistent reduction in Long COVID incidence amongst vaccinated individuals, although the extent of this effect remains unclear.

Areas timely for developing research

There is an urgent need to understand the causes of Long COVID, especially extreme fatigue more than 6 months after infection. We must understand who is at risk and whether reinfections similarly risk Long COVID.

© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press.
2023
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