Clinical presentation of post-COVID pain and its impact on quality of life in long COVID patients: a cross-sectional household survey of SARS-CoV-2 cases in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: Pain is one of the prevalent Long COVID Symptoms (LCS). Pain interferes with the quality of life (QoL) and induces disease burden. PURPOSE: The study aimed to elicit the clinical presentation of pain and determine the relationships between QoL and pain in LCS. METHODS: This household cross-sectional study of 12,925 SARS-CoV-2 cases between July and December 2021 was carried out in eight administrative divisions of Bangladesh. Stratified random sampling from the cases retrieved from the Ministry of Health was employed. Symptom screening was performed through COVID-19 Yorkshire Rehabilitation Scale, and long COVID was diagnosed according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. The analyses were conducted using IBM SPSS (Version 20.00). RESULTS: The prevalence of pain in long COVID was between 01 and 3.1% in the studied population. The study also found five categories of pain symptoms as LCS in Bangladesh: muscle pain 3.1% (95% CI; 2.4-3.8), chest pain 2.4% (95% CI; 1.8-3.1), joint pain 2.8% (95% CI; 2.2-2.3), headache 3.1% (95% CI; 2.4-3.8), and abdominal pain 0.3% (95% CI; 0.01-0.5). People with LCS as pain, multiple LCS, and longer duration of LCS had significantly lower quality of life across all domains of the WHOQOL-BREF (P < 0.001) compared to asymptomatic cases. CONCLUSION: Three out of ten people with long COVID experience painful symptoms, which can significantly reduce their quality of life. Comprehensive rehabilitation can improve the symptoms and reduce the burden of the disease.

Profile of long COVID symptoms needing rehabilitation: a cross-sectional household survey of 12,925 SARS-CoV-2 cases between July and December 2021 in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: It is important to determine the profile of long COVID (LC) symptoms within the scope of rehabilitation in Bangladesh. This study's objective was to estimate the newly experienced long COVID symptoms needing rehabilitation by determining the prevalence and spectrum of impairments due to LC in Bangladesh. METHODS: A Cross-sectional household survey of 12,925 COVID-19 patients confirmed by RT-PCR from 24 testing facilities in Bangladesh. LC was diagnosed according to WHO working group definition. COVID-19 Yorkshire Rehabilitation Scale (C19-YRS) was used to determine the symptom responses, symptom severity, new long COVID symptoms, and scope of rehabilitation. RESULTS: The population proportion of LC symptoms requiring rehabilitation interventions are 0.22 [95% CI, 0.20-0.24] in Bangladeshi people diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2. Among them, 0.08 [95% CI, 0.07-0.09] had mild, 0.07 [95% CI, 0.06-0.09] had moderate, and 0.05 [95% CI, 0.04-0.06] had severe long COVID symptoms (LCS). There was a significant positive correlation between LCS and functional disabilities (r = 0.889, p < 0.001), while a negative correlation was observed between the severity of symptoms and overall health (r=-0.658, p < 0.001). In comparison to the pre-COVID status, 17 new LCS were observed and the increase in the scope of rehabilitation intervention among LCS ranged between 0.01 [95% CI, 0.001-0.01] and 0.21 [95% CI, 0.19-0.22]. In Bangladesh, 59% (n = 334) of the LC cases are out of reach for any rehabilitation interventions. CONCLUSION: Nearly one-fourth of Bangladeshi Post-COVID-19 have long COVID (LC). Seventeen symptoms (LCS) were observed and more than half of the populations having long COVID are out of reach of any rehabilitation facilities.

Changes in Perception of Illness during Cardiac Rehabilitation Programme among Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome: A Longitudinal Study.

Little is known about the changes in perception of illness among patients with the acute coronary syndrome (ACS) during cardiac rehabilitation programme (CRP). The purpose of this study is to determine changes in perception of illness with ACS patients during CRP to evaluate the association of patients' characteristics with the perception of illness at the end of Phase II of CRP. A descriptive longitudinal study was conducted among 450 patients who attended 8-weeks of Phase II CRP at 2 public hospitals in Malaysia and perception of illness was assessed using Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire (BIPQ). The assessment was conducted before Phase II (T0), during the 4th session (T1), and at the end of right after the 8th session (T2). One-way repeated measures of ANOVA analysed the changes of perception at T1 and T2 while logistic regression analysis evaluated the association of patients' characteristics with the perception of illness at T2. Perception of illness changed during and after CRP from T0 to T1, and T1 to T2 (p < 0.001). The patient viewed ACS as an illness that changed from being more acute to a chronic condition as the sessions progressed. Previous history of acute myocardial infarction (OR = 2.380, 95% CI 1.46, 5.49) and angioplasty intervention were both found to be associated with the perception of illness (OR = 3.857, 95% CI 1.55, 9.61). Perception of illness changed during CRP and these changes are associated with patients' previous history of cardiac events. Phase II can be viewed as the second window of opportunity for healthcare professionals to intervene early in modifying the perception of illness.