Post Acute Sequelae of COVID-19

COVID-19 is a leading cause of death worldwide. The long-term effects of the virus are unknown. There is lack of reliable information about the natural history of post acute sequelae. Although there are limited evidence-based treatment guidelines, many patients receive unproven therapies. Given the mortality and morbidity associated with the illness and the growing number of patients who have survived COVID-19 the long-term effects are a growing area of inquiry. This study is designed to better understand the effects of SARS-CoV-2 that develop over time. This study will characterize the recovery process, epidemiology, and natural history of post-acute sequelae. This includes the clinical spectrum of recover and subsets of patients who have symptoms outside the standard course. Factors studied will include the individual, clinical context, severity of disease, duration of symptoms and the impact of treatment for acute SARS-CoV-2. This study will include a breadth of severity from those treated as outpatients, those requiring hospitalization, and those requiring critical care.

Key personnel will extract data recorded in the electronic health record (EHR) as part of routine clinical care in the evaluation in treatment of COVID-19 and its sequelae. Data such as incidence, prevalence, demographics, comorbidities, duration of illness, severity, level of medical care, measures of organ function, drug treatments, laboratory values, pulmonary function tests, computed tomography images, and other data from clinical care will be retrospectively entered into electronic data capture (REDCap).

Inclusion criteria

• 18 years or older
• COVID-19 diagnosis
• Seen in a Vanderbilt clinic or affiliated health facility

Exclusion criteria

• none