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

Tom Palmer

1 year ago

FILE - This undated, colorized electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, indicated in yellow, emerging from the surface of cells, indicated in blue/pink, cultured in a laboratory. The National Institutes of Health is opening a handful of studies to start testing possible treatments for long COVID, an anxiously awaited step in U.S. efforts against the mysterious condition. The announcement, Monday, July 31, 2023 comes amid frustration from patients who've struggled for months or years with sometimes disabling health problems. (NIAID-RML via AP, File)

(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.