Updated 20 June 2022
Long COVID is the name given to the wide range of symptoms experienced by people at least 4 weeks after the initial COVID-19 infection. You might also hear it called post-COVID syndrome, long-haul COVID, post-acute COVID syndrome (PACS), chronic COVID, or post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC). Researchers have reported Long COVID worldwide, and we are also seeing people experiencing Long COVID in New Zealand after the Omicron surge.
Common Long COVID-19 symptoms in adults can include:
- Fatigue
- worsening of symptoms following even minor physical or mental exertion
- Fever
- Shortness of breath
- Cough
- Changes in mood and mental health
- Headaches
- Difficulty concentrating (‘brain fog’)
- Chest pain
- Joint pain
- Muscle pain and weakness
- Persistent loss of sense of smell or taste
- Fast-beating or pounding heart
- Loss of muscle mass
- Numbness in the hands and feet or pins-and-needles
- Gastrointestinal symptoms (diarrhoea, stomach pain)
- New or worsening urinary symptoms (‘overactive bladder symptoms’)
Additional symptoms can be viewed in this image.
Common long COVID symptoms in children (<18 years) include fatigue, loss of smell and taste, dizziness, muscle weakness, chest pain and respiratory problems. Symptoms typically resolve within 1-5 months. It is important to contact your child’s GP if your child has an ongoing fever AND more than one of the following symptoms.
- Stomach pain
- Diarrhoea
- Vomiting
- Bloodshot eyes
- Skin rash
- Dizziness (signs of low blood pressure)
Visit KidsHealth for more information.
Some people appear to experience more serious long-term complications of COVID-19, although these are not as common. Some people who had a mild case of COVID-19 are still experiencing Long COVID a year after the acute illness. Some research is emerging that Long COVID is more likely in those who have many other health conditions, are female, and are from minority groups.
As Long COVID is still new, scientists and health professionals are still working out the best ways to manage and treat it. In New Zealand, the Ministry of Health has recently awarded a grant to the University of Otago to research Long COVID. An advisory group of the Ministry of Health is working on guidelines for management.
The lack of information about Long COVID can be frustrating for people experiencing it. Remember you are not alone; there are people all around the world experiencing Long COVID. Tips and advice can be found in the Resources Lists below.
For support around the management and treatment of your Long COVID symptoms, please seek the help of your GP or health care team. It is essential to contact your GP if you develop any new or worsening symptoms such as:
- Swelling of a leg or arm.
- Losing more weight.
- A fast-beating or a racing heart.
- Muscle aches
- Dizziness
- Sudden pain in groin/ shoulder/ knee
Dial 111 or seek urgent medical care if you:
- Are coughing up blood.
- Have severe chest pain.
- Are getting more breathless.
Remember if you need someone to talk to you can free call or text 1737 any time of the day or night to speak with a trained counsellor.
The lack of information about Long COVID can be frustrating for people experiencing it. Remember you are not alone; there are people all around the world experiencing Long COVID. Tips and advice can be found in the Resources Lists below.
Facebook group for Long COVID N.Z.
Facebook group for Long COVID U.K.
Patient-Led Research Collaborative
Tracking Symptoms
Because of the lack of clarity around the symptoms and experiences of Long COVID some patients may find it useful to keep track of their symptoms. Tracking (or keeping a log) of your symptoms can help better understand your symptoms, identify which symptoms impact you most, and identify patterns and changes in your symptoms.
You may also find it useful to take this to your appointments with your healthcare professionals when discussing your Long COVID symptoms. There are apps you can download for this purpose. If you prefer a paper version, an example can be found here.
The NHS (National Health Service, UK) COVID recovery website has symptom-based suggestions to manage Long COVID at home. Some suggestions include:
- Fatigue is the most common symptom in both adults and children. It gets worse in certain situations, such as physical inactivity, poor sleep patterns, work pressure, caring responsibilities, low mood, anxiety, and stress. Therefore, to manage fatigue, recognise it and discuss this with family and colleagues, get good sleep, try meditation techniques, prioritise and delegate to ease work pressure, keep active, and eat well.
- Regular breathing exercises (Papworth method, Buteyko method, yoga) are recommended to tackle breathlessness.
- To manage persistent cough, diaphragmatic breathing, steam inhalation, nasal breathing, and hydration are good tips besides prescribed medications.
- Tai chi, yoga, stretching, and cycling are recommended for muscle pain.
- Counterpressure manoeuvers (e.g. leg crossing, squatting, hand gripping) are helpful to deal with sudden fainting.
Vaccines
The most recent and comprehensive study worldwide investigating the relationship between vaccination status and the development of Long COVID found that vaccinated populations had lower risk of developing Long COVID after COVID infection than unvaccinated populations.
More information
Internationally efforts are underway to understand why Long COVID develops and how best to manage or treat it. This page will be updated as new evidence becomes available.
For more information about Long COVID, please see the resource list below or go to Information for G.P.s and other health professionals.
Resource list
Social Media
Facebook group for Long COVID N.Z.
Websites
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention
Office for National Statistics, U.K.
Office for National Statistics, U.K. Long COVID study updates
Patient-Led Research Collaborative
World Health Organization. Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19)
Articles
Akili to study EndeavourRx as a COVID-19 brain fog treatment
Clinical Sequelae of Covid-19 Survivors in Wuhan, China: A Single-Centre Longitudinal Study
Coronapod: counting the cost of long COVID
Coronavirus: Vaccines unexpectedly appear to fix 'Long COVID'
COVID-19: Long COVID clinics may be needed beyond April next year
COVID-19 survivor experiencing long-term symptoms
Do kids get long COVID? And how often? A paediatrician looks at the data.
In it for the Long Haul: More questions than answers on the lasting health effects of COVID-19
Long Covid: 'I can't walk 10m without a rest'
New Zealand COVID-19 long-haulers still suffering long-term effects a year on
Persistent Symptoms 3 Months after a Sars-Cov-2 Infection: The Post-Covid-19 Syndrome?
Radio New Zealand, Musical Chair: Jenene Crossan
Should children get COVID vaccines? What the science says
Some Long COVID patients feel much better after getting the vaccine
Some long-haul covid-19 patients say their symptoms are subsiding after getting vaccine
The Many Strange Long-term Symptoms of COVID-19 Explained.
The Silent Pandemic - Video
What Are the Long-Term Health Impacts of Coronavirus?
What Covid-19’s long tail is revealing about disease
What if You Never Get Better from COVID-19?
Contact Us
For more information about this website or the information presented, please email us as longcovidnihi@auckland.ac.nz
The information on this page was prepared by multi-disciplinary health professionals at the National Institute for Health Innovation and affiliates and was originally created on 9 December 2020.