AccScience Publishing / MI / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/mi.8545
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ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE

Severity and duration of post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection symptoms: Focus on physiological and cognitive effects

Rohan Melwani1 ,  Keerthana Noru1 ,  Sanya Kondapalli1 ,  Ameya Ravi1 ,  Saanvi Shah1 ,  Shashank Sashtry1 ,  Shreeya Setty1 ,  Sahar Jahanikia1*
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1 Jahanikia Neuroscience Laboratory, Center for Interdisciplinary Research, Aspiring Scholars Directed Research Program, Fremont, California, United States of America
MI, 8545 https://doi.org/10.36922/mi.8545
Submitted: 15 January 2025 | Revised: 23 February 2025 | Accepted: 10 March 2025 | Published: 21 April 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Immune Responses to Pulmonary Infections)
© 2025 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
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Abstract

The SARS-CoV-2 virus, responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, has impacted the health of millions globally, with many individuals experiencing persistent symptoms even after testing negative, a condition known as post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), or long COVID. This study analyzes demographic influences on the severity and duration of PASC symptoms, with an emphasis on physiological and cognitive effects. Using a self-reporting survey method, data were collected from a sample of 110 participants and analyzed using statistical methods such as exploratory factor analysis, Pearson correlation, and two-factor analysis of variance. The participants were primarily based in California, and a majority of them were ethnically Asian. The study found that females generally reported higher severity of cognitive and physiological symptoms compared to males, while symptom severity was generally lower among vaccinated individuals. Correlation analysis revealed a significant relationship between depression and cognitive impairments, underscoring the psychological impact of PASC. This study emphasizes the complexity of PASC, demonstrating how demographic characteristics such as age, gender, and vaccination status influence the severity and duration of symptoms, thereby contributing to the growing understanding of PASC. Further research should consider SARS-CoV-2 variant-specific impacts and broader population samples.

Keywords
COVID-19
Long COVID
PASC
Brain fog
Symptoms
COVID severity
COVID duration
Vaccination
Funding
None.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
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Microbes & Immunity, Electronic ISSN: 3029-2883 Print ISSN: 3041-0886, Published by AccScience Publishing
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