Results from a recent study suggests that people who received a Covid-19 vaccine had a “small overall improvement” in long-Covid symptoms when compared to unvaccinated patients.
The preprint study out of the United Kingdom (UK) observed 66 hospitalised Covid-19 patients who had symptoms that lingered for up to eight months.
Two groups of participants were observed, namely, forty-four vaccinated participants and 22 unvaccinated participants.
Both groups were highly symptomatic and were considered to be “long-haulers” prior to vaccination. Around 82% of all participants displayed at least one persistent symptom at the eight month follow up.
The predominant long-Covid symptoms were fatigue (61%), breathlessness (50%) and insomnia (38%).
Around 23% of vaccinated patients reported their symptoms improved while only 15% of unvaccinated patients reported relief of symptoms.
Long-Covid is a condition where people infected with the virus continue to experience symptoms for longer than usual and do not fully recover for several weeks or months after the start of their symptoms.
Those with long-Covid are often referred to as “long haulers” where a person experiences symptoms for more than 28 days after diagnosis, whether laboratory confirmed or clinical.
Several studies have suggested that around 10-30% of people who are infected with Covid-19 will experience lingering symptoms or long-Covid.
An informal survey conducted by Survivor Corps, an American non-profit grassroots movement, found that 171 people out of 450 people said their symptoms improved after vaccination.
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people should wait to get vaccinated until after they have fully recovered from the short-term symptoms of Covid-19.