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Baden-Württemberg EPILOC study with almost 12,000 people formerly infected with SARS-CoV-2 shows extent of impact on health / Publication in the British Medical Journal

Around a quarter of all EPILOC study participants suffer from significant symptoms that affect their health and ability to work six to twelve months after a coronavirus infection. The population-based EPILOC study, funded by the state of Baden-Württemberg, included almost 12,000 formerly SARS-CoV-2 infected people aged 18 to 65. It describes the type and severity of symptoms that occurred after the acute infection, as well as their significance for quality of life and ability to work even months later. The results were published in the renowned British Medical Journal on October 13, 2022.

"Although we had suspected the trend, we were very surprised at how many younger people with initially uncomplicated acute SARS-CoV-2 infection were at risk of Long Covid," says study leader Prof. Dr. Winfried Kern from the Department of Medicine II at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg. The universities of Heidelberg, Tübingen and Ulm were also involved in the study. The study was carried out with the help of the local health authorities in the vicinity of the university locations.

Baden-Württemberg's Science Minister Petra Olschowski said: "The valuable findings on the type and severity of various symptoms in Long Covid patients are an important step towards urgently needed treatment options. Viral diseases, especially at a young age, often have far-reaching consequences for quality of life and ability to work. It is very important to us to use this research to get COVID-19 secondary diseases under control before they manifest themselves and, ideally, to learn from this for the treatment of other diseases. Our institutions are working together extremely well to unravel and tackle complex challenges such as Long-COVID." The state has been supporting the EPILOC study since August 2021 until November 2022 with a total of €2.3 million. The continuation of the study (EPILOC II) for a further two years is also to be funded from winter 2022.

Above all, chronic fatigue/exhaustion, concentration difficulties or memory disorders, breathing difficulties and shortness of breath, altered sense of smell as well as anxiety and depressive symptoms were among the most common symptoms six to twelve months after acute SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) (frequency more than 20 percent in each case). The lead author of the study, Dr. Raphael Peter from the Institute of Epidemiology and Medical Biometry at Ulm University, reports "Neurocognitive impairments in addition to chronic fatigue were most strongly associated with reduced health and reduced work ability in Long-Covid. And even if we have to assume a possible bias due to selective participation in the study, there still remains a significant burden of disease." For the first time, the study also calculated the minimum possible frequencies under the assumption that all non-participants had no complaints. Scientist Peter: "An extreme assumption, but as is often the case, the truth lies somewhere between these values and the calculated frequencies of the study participants."

The authors are convinced that the results will contribute to a better understanding of the personal risks and social costs of Long Covid. They can also help to target rehabilitation measures more precisely. Some of the study participants have already been invited to the respective university hospital to examine the clinical picture in more detail and further clarify the mechanisms (EPILOC phase 2). The aim is to further clarify possible causes and the long-term course of the symptoms.

Original title of the study: Post-acute sequelae of covid-19 six to 12 months after infection: population based study
DOI: 10.1136/bmj-2022-071050
Link to the study: www.bmj.com/content/379/bmj-2022-071050

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Winfried V. Kern
Study director
Department of Infectiology
Department of Medicine II
Uniklinik Freiburg
Phone: 0761-270 18190
EPILOC@uniklinik-freiburg.de