Risk factors of post-COVID-19 symptoms, a cross-sectional study in patients with asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease

Abstract

Post-COVID-19 symptoms are common following COVID-19, but risk factors of persistent symptoms in patients with asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD) remain unclear. We aimed to assess the frequency and risk factors of post-COVID-19 symptoms in patients with asthma and COPD. In this cross-sectional study, we used data from the Swedish PRAXIS study collected in 2022. The cohort included randomly selected adult patients with a diagnosis of asthma or COPD in medical records from central Sweden's primary and secondary care. Participants completed a comprehensive questionnaire, and their responses were analysed. We used logistic regression and adjusted for age and lung disease diagnoses. Among 494 patients with confirmed COVID-19, 59% (289/494) reported post-COVID-19 symptoms. Risk factors for post-COVID-19 symptoms included severe acute infection (adjusted odds ratio aOR: 8.91, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.49-22.8), higher age (aOR:1.25, 95% CI: 1.09-1.45), female sex (aOR: 1.52, 95% CI: 1.04-2.21), and obesity [BMI ≥ 30] (aOR: 2.24, 95% CI: 1.44-3.47)). Anxiety/depression (aOR:1.79, 95% CI: 1.13-2.80) and chronic pain (aOR: 3.61, 95% CI: 1.95-6.69) were also significant risk factors. Patients with asthma or COPD had a high prevalence of post-COVID-19 symptoms compared to other studies. Several demographic and clinical factors were associated with post-COVID-19 symptoms, which could help identify patients at increased risk.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. npj Primary Care Respiratory Medicine, 2026 · DOI ↗