Women Face Higher Risk for Long COVID

MONDAY, Jan. 27, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Women have a higher risk for developing long COVID than men, according to a study published online Jan. 22 in JAMA Network Open.

Dimpy P. Shah, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, and colleagues evaluated sex differences in the risk for developing long COVID among adults with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection. The analysis included data from the National Institutes of Health Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery-Adult cohort (12,276 participants).

The researchers found that female sex was associated with a higher risk for long COVID in the primary full (relative risk [RR], 1.31; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.06 to 1.62) model that included demographic and clinical characteristics and social determinants of health, as well as the reduced model (RR, 1.44; 95 percent CI, 1.17 to 1.77) that included only age, race, and ethnicity. Similar findings were seen across all age groups except those aged 18 to 39 years (RR, 1.04; 95 percent CI, 0.72 to 1.49). Similarly, in an analysis of only nonpregnant participants, female sex was associated with a significantly higher overall long COVID risk (RR, 1.50; 95 percent CI, 1.27 to 1.77). Among participants aged 40 to 54 years, a trend toward higher risk was seen in menopausal female participants (RR, 1.42; 95 percent CI, 0.99 to 2.03) and in nonmenopausal female participants (RR, 1.45; 95 percent CI, 1.15 to 1.83) versus male participants.

“Understanding the mechanisms of sex differences can provide preventive and management strategies for not only long COVID but also other postviral illnesses,” the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text