Ongoing symptoms and functional impairment 12 weeks after testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 or influenza in Australia: an observational cohort study

Abstract

Objective In a highly vaccinated Australian population, we aimed to compare ongoing symptoms and functional impairment 12 weeks after PCR-confirmed COVID-19 infection with PCR-confirmed influenza infection.

Methods and analysis The study commenced on a positive PCR test for either COVID-19 or influenza in June 2022 during concurrent waves of both viruses. Participants were followed up 12 weeks later in September 2022 and self-reported ongoing symptoms and functional impairment. We conducted a multivariate logistic regression analysis, controlling for age, sex, First Nations status, vaccination status and socioeconomic profile.

Results There were 2195 and 951 participants in the COVID-19 and influenza-positive cohorts, respectively. After controlling for potential predictor variables, we found no evidence to suggest that adults with COVID-19 were more likely to have ongoing symptoms (21.4% vs 23.0%, aOR 1.18; 95% CI 0.92 to 1.50) or moderate-to-severe functional impairment (4.1% vs 4.4%, OR 0.81; 95% CI 0.55 to 1.20) at 12 weeks after their diagnosis than adults who had influenza.

Conclusions In a highly vaccinated population exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, long COVID may manifest as a postviral syndrome of no greater severity than seasonal influenza but differing in terms of the volume of people affected and the potential impact on health systems. This study underscores the importance of long COVID research featuring an appropriate comparator group.

Trial registration number ACTRN12623000041651.

Data availability statement Data are available upon reasonable request. Because of data confidentiality provisions under Queensland public health legislation, individual data from Queensland Health’s Notifiable Conditions System will not be shared publicly. We can share the research protocol and survey questions. Requests for deidentified data associated with this research should be sent to the corresponding author (matthew.brown@health.qld.gov.au) after publication of the paper