U.K. study finds less than a third of hospitalized COVID-19 patients feel fully recovered a year later

Researchers found minimal improvement among those who completed two follow-up assessments and the study reported the most persistent symptoms one year after being discharged from the hospital were fatigue, aching muscles, physically slowing down, poor sleep, breathlessness, joint pain or swelling, slowing down in thinking, pain, short-term memory loss and limb weakness. After one year, 22.4% said they weren't sure if they had fully recovered, compared with the 19.6% who felt unsure after five months. Nearly 49% said they didn't feel fully recovered a year later, compared with the 54.9% who felt that way after five months. Several factors were associated with those who still felt symptoms a year later. For example, patients who were on mechanical ventilation during their hospital stay were 58% less likely to be fully recovered, while those who were obese were half as likely.  Researchers wrote their results highlight the need to integrate physical and mental healthcare for long COVID patients to alleviate symptoms and to share knowledge between healthcare professionals to improve care.