"Discussion: The main results from the present study were: (1) the prevalence of PCC [post–COVID-19 condition or 'long Covid'] 6 months after acute COVID-19 was approximately 50%, but was equally high in a control group of comparable SARS-CoV2–negative individuals; (2) acute COVID-19 was not an independent risk factor for PCC; (3) the severity of clinical symptoms at baseline, irrespective of SARS-CoV-2 status, was the main risk factor of persistent symptoms 6 months later.
Symptom prevalence data are consistent with other controlled studies of young people after acute COVID-19 reporting a high symptom load, with only subtle differences between individuals testing positive and negative for SARS-CoV-2. A large population-based study found no associations between most persistent symptoms attributed to COVID-19 and serological evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Hence, mild acute COVID-19 per se does not seem to be the main driver of most persistent symptoms in this age group. Rather, 2 other phenomena might be affecting these results: first, symptoms associated with PCC are common in the general population. For instance, the point prevalence of fatigue was reported to be 34% to 38% among British adolescents, with similar high rates for symptoms such as dyspnea and memory problems. Second, several studies have documented a significant increase in mental distress in the general population during the pandemic, particularly affecting young people, which in turn may affect physical symptoms. Hence, nonspecific stressors either unique to or increasing during the pandemic, and which affected both SARS-CoV-2–positive and SARS-CoV-2–negative individuals similarly, may be important for symptom persistence and associated disability. This possibility should be considered when societal countermeasures against infection outbreaks such as lockdowns are implemented."
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