About 18 million US adults report having had long COVID: CDC

The findings were part of a study conducted by the NCHS
Study: Women were more likely to experience long COVID than men
1.5% of children reported having had long COVID

Updated: Sep 27, 2023 / 10:32 PM CDT

(NewsNation) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that about 18 million adults in the United States have grappled with the lingering effects of COVID-19, known as “long COVID.”

The findings were released as part of a comprehensive study conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics, shedding light on the widespread and enduring impact of the pandemic on the nation’s health.

According to the CDC’s report, approximately 18.4 million adults across the country, or about 6.9% of the adult population, reported having persistent symptoms in the months following their initial COVID-19 infection in 2022.

In 2022, 6.9% of adults reported ever having long COVID and 3.4% of adults reported currently having long COVID at the time of the survey.

The study indicates that women were more likely to experience long COVID than men, with nearly 8.5% of women reporting ever having lingering symptoms compared to approximately 5.2% of men.

In addition, according to the report, 1.5% of children reported ever having long COVID.

Symptoms vary and can include fatigue, difficulty breathing, headaches, brain fog, joint and muscle pain and continued loss of taste and smell, according to the CDC.