Exploring the trajectory recovery curve of the number of post-COVID Symptoms: The LONG-COVID-EXP-CM Multicenter Study

OBJECTIVES: This multicenter study investigated the recovery curve of the number of post-COVID-19 symptoms in previously hospitalized patients using an exponential decay model and mosaic plots. METHODS: Patients hospitalized during the first wave of the pandemic (from March 10, 2010–May 31, 2020) due to COVID-19 from 5 hospitals in Madrid, Spain were scheduled for 2 telephone interviews at 2 follow-ups with a 5-month period in between and were asked about the presence of post-COVID-19 symptoms. The total number of post-COVID-19 symptoms was monitored. Clinical features, symptoms at hospital admission, and hospitalization data were collected from medical records. RESULTS: A total of 1593 patients who had COVID-19 were assessed 8.4 (T1) and 13.2 (T2) months after hospitalization. The mean number of post-COVID-19 symptoms was 2.6 (SD 2.0) at T1 and 1.5 (SD 1.4) at T2. The trajectory curve showed a decrease in prevalence trend. The analysis also revealed that 985 (61.8%) subjects reported more (T1>T2), 549 (34.5%) equal (T1 = T2), and 59 (3.7%) fewer (T1<T2) post-COVID-19 symptoms in the first tertile (T1: 8.4 months) compared with the second tertile (T2: 13.2 months) assessment. CONCLUSIONS: Current trajectory analysis revealed an overall decrease in the tendency in the number of post-COVID-19 symptoms throughout the 2 years after the infection.