Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41876769›Full record

ArticleCommunications medicine2026

Paxlovid shows organ-specific and age-specific impacts on risk of developing post-acute sequelae of COVID-19.

Alaleh Azhir, Jingya Cheng, Jiazi Tian, Shawn N Murphy, Hossein Estiri

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

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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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. 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

5 authors.

Alaleh Azhir *Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Jingya Cheng *Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0006-1236-1614
Jiazi TianDepartment of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0599-3438
Shawn N MurphyDepartment of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1905-8806
Hossein EstiriDepartment of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. hestiri@mgh.harvard.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0204-8978

Funding

Temporal Phenotypes and Risk Models for the Post-COVID Syndrome and its sub-typesR01AI165535 · NIAID · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI Hossein Estiri, SHAWN N MURPHY · 2022 to 2026
$4.1M
NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI165535U.S. Department of Health & Human Services | NIH | National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) R01AI165535
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe impact of antiviral therapies, including Paxlovid, on post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) remains inconclusive.

methodsWe analyzed data from 19,413 patients (age > 18) from a validated PASC research cohort in New England who experienced at least one COVID-19 infection episode between January 1, 2022, and June 7, 2022, totaling 22,094 episodes. Multivariable logistic regression with inverse probability weights was used to infer the causal effects of Paxlovid treatment during acute infection and the risk of PASC overall (primary outcome), stratified by age group and organ system.

resultsAcross all age groups, Paxlovid shows no statistically significant effect in lowering overall PASC risk. Stratification by organ system reveals a 37% reduction in gastrointestinal PASC (OR: 0.63; 95% CI: [0.468, 0.850]; p < 0.05) but a 97.4% increase in the risk of eye and ear-related PASC (OR: 1.974; 95% CI: [1.048, 3.718]; p < 0.05). Among patients aged 65 to 75 years who were not hospitalized, Paxlovid is associated with a 16.8% reduction in PASC risk (OR: 0.832; 95% CI: [0.7, 0.989]; p < 0.05). No statistically significant effects is observed for other organ-specific outcomes.

conclusionsPaxlovid demonstrates organ-specific effects on the risk of PASC, with a reduction in gastrointestinal symptoms and an increased risk of eye and ear-related symptoms. In older, non-hospitalized patients, Paxlovid modestly reduces overall PASC risk. These findings highlight the complexity of antiviral therapy's long-term impact and underscore the need for further research to clarify the mechanisms underlying these outcomes.

Identifiers

PMID41876769
PMCPMC13187290

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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.