Long COVID-19 is a growing public health concern, but its long-term burden and predictors remain underexplored, particularly in underrepresented populations. This four-year prospective cohort study was conducted in Saudi Arabia, enrolling adults with confirmed acute COVID-19 from multiple affiliated healthcare centers between March 2020 and March 2024. Of 1,521 screened patients, 816 were enrolled and followed for up to four years (median: 24 months). Per WHO criteria, participants were classified as having long COVID-19 (n = 238) or resolved infection (n = 578). Demographics, comorbidities, vaccination, reinfection, and acute illness severity were recorded. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was assessed using SF-36 and EQ-5D-5 L. Logistic regression identified predictors of long COVID-19, and Cox proportional hazards models evaluated time to recovery. Fatigue (57.1%), post-exertional malaise (45.8%), cough (41.2%), and cognitive dysfunction (30.7%) were the most common persistent symptoms. Female sex (adjusted OR 11.11; 95% CI: 4.48–26.24) and diabetes mellitus (adjusted OR 14.3; 95% CI: 7.0–29.4) independently predicted long COVID-19. Delayed recovery was associated with female sex (aHR 3.36; 95% CI: 1.85–6.10), diabetes (aHR 1.57; 95% CI: 1.00–2.46), reinfection (aHR 1.86; 95% CI: 1.05–3.29), and hospitalization (aHR 1.08; 95% CI: 1.01–1.16). HRQoL scores remained significantly lower at 6 and 12 months. In the long COVID-19 group, 38.7% of patients normally resumed work within 12 months, compared to 82.3% in the resolved COVID-19 group. Nearly 29% of post-acute COVID-19 patients developed long COVID-19 in this Middle Eastern cohort. Female sex, diabetes, reinfection, and hospitalization predicted delayed recovery. Persistent symptoms and impaired HRQoL highlight the need for early risk stratification and structured post-COVID care.

Invisable Aches

LONG COVID LAND Long Covid Land was created and is maintained by Long Covid patients committed to preserving Long Covid stories and resources. Others have tried to shape the narrative around Long Covi...

Before After Teals and Greys   I lay under a listening tree The sky my blanket The earth my pillow My roots firm and fragile Almost a bubble of existence Perched between life and buried Greys and teal...

My (not-so) Patient Testimony

I arrived at the care home. No wheelchair waiting as promised. I told Kinny, my carer for the last five months, I just wanted to get in, no fuss. So, I held on to her & walked into reception. The mana...

LONG COVID LAND Long Covid Land was created and is maintained by Long Covid patients committed to preserving Long Covid stories and resources. Others have tried to shape the narrative around Long Covi...

The New Me

A nurse with Long COVID

Long Covid Impact on Minority Communities

Today is Sunday, 1 September 2024. The start of a new month as we head into my favourite season that is Autumn. It’s not yet 9am, and I sit here watching Declan sleeping across the room from me. We’ve...

LONG COVID LAND Long Covid Land was created and is maintained by Long Covid patients committed to preserving Long Covid stories and resources. Others have tried to shape the narrative around Long Covi...

UnspeakableBy CBG When I think of all the amazing, talented people who have been destroyed by long Covid fromchess grand masters, athletes, health care workers, teachers, etc., to the quiet unsung her...

I’m BethH an artist, mom, nana, activist, gardener, swimmer, queer senior who stayed safe, even taking care of my grandkids and going everywhere masked up, until I contracted a SARS-CoV-2 infection op...

“Everything I Own” is a song written by American singer-songwriter David Gates. It was originally recorded by Gates’s soft rock band Bread for their 1972 album “Baby I’m-a Want You.”  It included this...

Daras story with captions

I was working as a senior carer in a dementia home all through the pandemic and didn’t contract COVID all through it. In January 2023, my partner (who worked at the same care home) felt unwell and a c...

During this Pandemic, I learned that people who define kindness as remembering other people’s birthdays and anniversaries and hosting holiday celebrations had a visceral aversion to extending true kin...

I’m from the UK and was a Paediatric Complex Care Nurse for over 15 years. Then Covid arrived.  Like many healthcare professionals in the UK, we were redeployed to help in the places that needed it. P...

Confessions of a Covid Long-Hauler by: Nita Jain April 7th, 2020 is a day which will forever live in infamy in my memory. It all began inconspicuously enough in early April. After taking a solitary stroll one afternoon, I developed a sore throat, joint pain in my knees, and weakness in my upper body. For […]

And a look at Canadian Taxpayers Federation support for the premier’s Florida trip for a right-wing gathering.