Prevalência de comorbidades e sua relação com sequelas em pacientes pós COVID-19

Abstract

Coronavirus is part of a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more serious illnesses. COVID-19 is caused by the new strain of the Coronavirus discovered in 2019, it is capable of causing Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome 2 (SARS-COV-2), which poses harmful risks to the population, with some cases so serious that it is necessary to the patient is admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICU). It is known that people with comorbidities are the most likely to be affected by diseases in general, but as for the relationship with COVID-19, as it is something very new, research is needed for confirmation. This was an observational quantitative study, cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical, whose purpose was to describe the relationship of comorbidities and sequelae left in severe cases of infection caused by the SARS-COV-2 virus, entitled COVID-19 . This study was carried out using data obtained from the larger project “Analysis of the post-COVID-19 health situation in the southern region of Brazil”, where home visits were made to the respondents, with data obtained from the Epidemiological Surveillance of the Municipal Secretariat of Passo Fundo – RS, in order to apply a questionnaire (ANNEX A) developed for the study itself, which contains sociodemographic, health and behavior assessments. The database was then analyzed in order to raise a clinical-epidemiological profile of those studied, who faced the infection with or without the need for treatment in ICUs in a city in the north of Rio Grande do Sul. In the sample of 157 participants, there was a predominance of women (52.9%), aged over 60 years (67.5%), of white race/skin color (71.3%). Most participants reported having a good/very good/great perception of their general health status before COVID-19 (72.0%) and most of them had received at least two doses of the vaccine against the disease (76.4% ). Of the total number of individuals, 59.2% had hypertension, 38.9% heart disease, 35% diabetes, 37.6% hypercholesterolemia and 35% osteopenia. Symptoms presented during hospitalization involved tiredness (85.3%), general malaise (83.4%), breathing problems (82.2%), cough (70.7%) and fever (59.2%). . The main sequelae identified were fatigue (80.9%), general malaise (61.8%), osteoarthromuscular pain (58.6%), shortness of breath (58.0%) and difficulties in performing daily tasks (51 .6%), these lasting an average of 38 weeks, the sequelae identified in at least one of the three instruments is 114 cases, representing 73.5% of the total sample with a calculated prevalence of 74% (95CI 67-81%), in the self-reported sequelae, 84 people had more than 10 sequelae (53.5%) with a calculated prevalence of 54% (95CI 46-61%). When evaluating the sequelae inferred by the instrument in individuals with comorbidities, a statistically significant greater distribution of the outcome in individuals with more than 3 comorbidities stands out (79.3%, p<0.048), among the specific comorbidities we have the diseases mental health (86.7%, p<0.018), hypertension (79.6%, p<0.037), diabetes (85.5%, p<0.013) and osteopenia (83.3%, p<0.043). In the distribution of the presence of comorbidities in relation to the sequelae reported by the participants, a statistically significant higher frequency of sequelae was observed in individuals with mental health comorbidities (76.1%, p<0.001) and sarcopenia (68.4 %, p<0.034). This study shows the prevalence of comorbidities, as well as problems related to the outcome. The continuity in the production of studies in the same scope of pre-existing diseases related to the sequelae of COVID-19 is essential for the elaboration of data that are, in fact, true about the relationship. In this way, greater protection may be possible for individuals at risk for future diseases.