Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37404951›Full record

ArticleOpen forum infectious diseases2023

Systematic Review of the Prevalence of Long COVID.

Mirembe Woodrow, Charles Carey, Nida Ziauddeen, Rebecca Thomas, Athena Akrami, Vittoria Lutje, Darren C Greenwood, Nisreen A Alwan

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Open forum infectious diseases, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 104 papers, 8 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
104citing papers in PubMed, 8 pooled it
25.3field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

104 citing papers in PubMed, 8 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 123 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Understanding how social determinants of health shape Long COVID outcomes: a rapid review of evidence.Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2025
    Pooled it
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  6. Prevalence and symptoms of Long Covid-19 in the workplace.Occupational medicine (Oxford, England) · 2025
    Pooled it
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  9. Trial
  10. Trial
  11. Article
  12. Neurodegenerative and Cognitive Consequences of Long COVID.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
    Review
  13. Observational
  14. Article
  15. Article
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  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Review

44 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 7 institutions in 1 country.

Mirembe WoodrowSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6113-0050
Charles CareyManchester University NHS Foundation Trust and The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6121-7399
Nida ZiauddeenSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom.
Rebecca ThomasUniversity of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Athena AkramiSainsbury Wellcome Centre, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
Vittoria LutjeCochrane Infectious Diseases Group, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Darren C GreenwoodSchool of Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7035-3096
Nisreen A AlwanSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom.
University of Southampton · GBCochrane · GBManchester University NHS Foundation Trust · GBSainsbury Laboratory · GBUniversity Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust · GBUniversity of Leeds · GBUniversity of Liverpool · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Long COVID occurs in those infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) whose symptoms persist or develop beyond the acute phase. We conducted a systematic review to determine the prevalence of persistent symptoms, functional disability, or pathological changes in adults or children at least 12 weeks postinfection. Methods: We searched key registers and databases from January 1, 2020 to November 2, 2021, limited to publications in English and studies with at least 100 participants. Studies in which all participants were critically ill were excluded. Long COVID was extracted as prevalence of at least 1 symptom or pathology, or prevalence of the most common symptom or pathology, at 12 weeks or later. Heterogeneity was quantified in absolute terms and as a proportion of total variation and explored across predefined subgroups (PROSPERO ID CRD42020218351). Results: One hundred twenty studies in 130 publications were included. Length of follow-up varied between 12 weeks and 12 months. Few studies had low risk of bias. All complete and subgroup analyses except 1 had I Conclusions: The way in which Long COVID is defined and measured affects prevalence estimation. Given the widespread nature of SARS-CoV-2 infection globally, the burden of chronic illness is likely to be substantial even using the most conservative estimates.

Indexed as

Long COVIDprevalenceSARS-CoV-2systematic review

Identifiers

PMID37404951
PMCPMC10316694
OpenAlexW4367857099

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.