Long COVID usually resolves within 1 year for patients with mild symptoms — study finds

Most long COVID-19 symptoms resolve within one year after infection for people with mild cases of Covid-19. That is the major finding of a large study conducted in Israel.

The results of the study, published on January 11, compared thousands of vaccinated and unvaccinated people with mild COVID symptoms with people who tested negative for the virus. Long COVID was defined as symptoms that continue or appear more than four weeks after an initial COVID-19 infection.

The study involved a huge sample of people. Researchers analysed the medical records of nearly 300,000 people diagnosed with mild cases of COVID-19 and compared their health over the next year with approximately 300,000 people who did not have COVID-19.

“Because of the [large] study’s size, it was possible to look at the change in symptom prevalence over time and the effects of other factors on persistent symptoms,” said Dr. Peter Openshaw, a professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London.

The results of the study concluded with the following finding:

“This study suggests that patients with mild COVID-19 are at risk for a small number of health outcomes, most of which are resolved within a year from diagnosis.”

The medical community — according to reports in various media outlets — indicate that medical professionals are encouraged and pleased with the findings of the massive study.