Who is at Risk of Long-Term Covid?
According to researchers, it is particularly hard to pin down high-risk groups of long-term Covid because there are a variety of different triggers that lead to the problem. Some may originate from virus-related damages, damages caused by the immune response, or from stress caused by hospitalization. Other risk factors like Covid virus hiding out in the human body, like in the guts, may also increase challenges for infected people to full recovery. Apart from the above factors, researchers suggest that:
- Women are more susceptible to long-term COVID than men
- Infected patients having 5+ symptoms in the first seven days have an increased chance of lingering COVID.
- People with preexisting health problems, such as asthma, lung disease, and cancers, may be more likely to suffer long-term COVID.
- Older age may increase the likelihood of long-term Covid. [3]