Diseases & Conditions
COVID-19 vaccination may lower the risk for long COVID
In the journals
- Reviewed by Howard E. LeWine, MD, Chief Medical Editor, Harvard Health Publishing; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
While science continues to explore the mystery of long COVID, a study in the March 2024 issue of The Lancet Respiratory Medicine suggests that a COVID-19 vaccine may offer some protection.
Most people with COVID-19 get better within several days to a few weeks after infection. According to the CDC, a person has long COVID if symptoms last longer than four weeks, or reappear after the person has recovered. The World Health Organization recognizes 25 long COVID symptoms, including fatigue, shortness of breath, and cognitive dysfunction. For the study, researchers examined the health records of 20 million vaccinated and unvaccinated people in the United Kingdom, Spain, and Estonia to see who developed long COVID symptoms over the first two-plus years of the pandemic. The researchers found that having had a COVID vaccine before being infected reduced the risk of developing long COVID by up to 52%. The next phase is to explore whether boosters further reduce the risk of long COVID or offer protection from long COVID after infection with newer variants.
Image: © Jacob Wackerhausen /Getty Images
About the Author
Matthew Solan, Executive Editor, Harvard Men's Health Watch
About the Reviewer
Howard E. LeWine, MD, Chief Medical Editor, Harvard Health Publishing; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
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