Renata Rego Lins Fumis1, Eduardo Leite Vieira Costa1,2, Bruno Martins Tomazini1,3, Leandro Utino Taniguchi1,4, Livia do Valle Costa1, Christian Valle Morinaga1, Marcia Martiniano de Sousa e Sá1, Luciano Cesar Pontes de Azevedo1,4, Teresa Cristina Nascimento1, Carla Bernardes Ledo1, Maura Salaroli de Oliveira1, Luiz Francisco Cardoso1, Laerte Pastore Junior1, José Mauro Vieira Junior1
J Bras Pneumol.2023;49(3):e20230056
Objective: COVID-19 has been associated with a significant burden to those who survive the acute phase. We aimed to describe the quality of life and symptoms of anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at 90 days after hospital discharge of COVID-19 patients. Methods: Patients with COVID-19 admitted to a private hospital in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, between April of 2020 and April of 2021 were interviewed by telephone at 30 and 90 days after discharge to assess the quality of life and symptoms of depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Results: A total of 2,138 patients were included. The mean age was 58.6 ± 15.8 years, and the median length of hospital stay was 9.0 (5.0-15.8) days. Between the two time points, depression increased from 3.1% to 7.2% (p < 0.001), anxiety increased from 3.2% to 6.2% (p < 0.001), and PTSD increased from 2.3% to 5.0% (p < 0.001). At least one physical symptom related to COVID-19 diagnosis persisted in 32% of patients at day 90. Conclusions: Persistence of physical symptoms was high even at 90 days after discharge. Although the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and PTSD was low, these symptoms persisted for three months, with a significant increase between the time points. This finding indicates the need to identify at-risk patients so that they can be given an appropriate referral at discharge.
Keywords: COVID-19; Anxiety; Depression; Stress disorders, post-traumatic; Quality of life; Critical care outcomes.