Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38481650›Full record

ArticleCanada communicable disease report = Releve des maladies transmissibles au Canada2023

Healthcare costs and effects of post-COVID-19 condition in Canada.

Ellen Rafferty, Ali Unsal, Erin Kirwin, Institute of Health Economics, Edmonton, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Health Organisation and 6 more

Open access · diamondAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Canada communicable disease report = Releve des maladies transmissibles au Canada, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.4field-weighted citation impact, top 17% 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

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Global prevalence of post-COVID-19 condition: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective evidence.Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2025
    Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
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

16 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Ellen Rafferty
Ali Unsal
Erin Kirwin
Institute of Health Economics
Edmonton
Department of Medicine
Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry
University of Alberta
Edmonton
Health Organisation
Policy
Economics
School of Health Sciences
University of Manchester
Manchester
United Kingdom
Institute of Health Economics · CAUniversity of Alberta · CAUniversity of Manchester · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: As evidence of the long-term health impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to grow across Canada, a key concern is the costs and health impacts of post-COVID-19 condition (PCC), especially while the healthcare system remains under substantial strain. The objective of this study is to estimate healthcare costs and quality-adjusted life year (QALY) decrements per PCC case and per acute COVID-19 case by vaccination status. Methods: First, we conducted a rapid review of the literature to estimate 1) the probability of developing PCC following COVID-19 infection by vaccination status, 2) the probability of each condition commonly associated with PCC, 3) healthcare costs and QALY decrements associated with each condition and 4) the number of PCC cases currently in Canada. Second, using the data gathered from the literature, we built a tool to estimate the cost and QALY decrements per PCC and COVID-19 case. Results: Post-COVID-19 condition costs per COVID-19 case ranged from CAD 1,675 to CAD 7,340, and QALY decrements ranged between 0.047 to 0.206, in the first year following COVID-19 infection. Overall, individuals who were unvaccinated when they were infected had higher costs and QALY decrements. We estimated the total burden of PCC to the Canadian healthcare system based on PCC estimates up until spring 2023 would be between CAD 7.8 and CAD 50.6 billion. Conclusion: This article demonstrates the large potential health and economic burden of PCC for Canadians, and the importance of vaccination and other infection control strategies in reducing the longer-term costs and effects.

Indexed as

costing analysisCOVID-19economic burdenhealthcare costspost-COVID conditionquality-adjusted life years

Identifiers

PMID38481650
PMCPMC10936747
OpenAlexW4388818416

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.