Exploring the dynamics of COVID-19 in a Greenlandic cohort: Mild acute illness and moderate risk of long COVID
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- Exploring the dynamics of COVID-19 in a Greenlandic cohort
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Objectives: This study aimed to explore how the Greenlandic population experienced the course of both acute and long-term COVID-19. It was motivated by the unique epidemiologic situation in Greenland, with delayed community transmission of SARS-CoV-2 relative to the rest of the world. Methods: In a survey among 310 Greenlandic adults, we assessed the association between previous SARS-CoV-2 infection and overall health outcomes by administering three repeated questionnaires over 12 months after infection, with a response rate of 41% at the 12-month follow-up. The study included 128 individuals with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection from January/February 2022 and 182 test-negative controls. Participants were recruited through personal approaches, phone calls, and social media platforms. Results: A total of 53.7% of 162 participants who were test-positive recovered within 4 weeks and 2.5% were hospitalized due to SARS-CoV-2. The most common symptoms were fatigue and signs of mild upper respiratory tract infection. Less than 5% reported sick leave above 2 weeks after infection. Compared with participants who were test-negative, there was an increased risk of reporting fatigue (risk differences 25.4%, 95% confidence interval 8.8-44.0) and mental exhaustion (risk differences 23.4%, 95% confidence interval 4.8-42.2) up to 12 months after a positive test. Conclusions: Our results indicate that during a period dominated by the Omicron variant, Greenlanders experienced a mild acute course of COVID-19, with quick recovery, minimizing the impact on sick leave. Long COVID may be present in Greenlanders, with symptoms persisting up to 12 months after infection. However, it is important to consider the small sample size and modest response rate as limitations when interpreting the results.
| Originalsprog | Engelsk |
|---|---|
| Artikelnummer | 100366 |
| Tidsskrift | IJID Regions |
| Vol/bind | 11 |
| Antal sider | 9 |
| ISSN | 2772-7076 |
| DOI | |
| Status | Udgivet - 2024 |
Bibliografisk note
Funding Information:
This work was supported by Greenland Research Council and the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources PhD-grant (grant no. 80.39) and Research Promotion Grant (grant no. FF2022/I/d2c0f), Kong Christian den Tiendes Fond (grant no. 35/2022), Grosserer L.F. Foghts Fond (grant no. 22.288), and contributions from the Department of Clinical Microbiology and the Department of Infectious Diseases, Rigshospitalet University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark. The study was approved by the Greenlandic Ethics Committee (2022-12144) and the Greenlandic Health Authorities. Participation in the study was voluntary. All participants gave written informed consent before participating. Participants were not paid. The authors of this study would like to thank the Greenlandic Board of Health, Jesper Olesen, Head of the Health Center at Queen Ingrid's Hospital, Greenland, and Inge-Lise Kleist, Head of Laboratory, Queen Ingrid's Hospital, Greenland, for giving access to technical facilities and staff assistance. The authors would also like to thank the Nuuk Center for their assistance in recruiting participants for the study. Finally, the authors would like to thank all the study participants. MM and TA initiated the study. MM, TA, AK, PV, and KM designed the study and developed the study protocol. AS developed the questionnaires. MM and TA recruited participants, carried out the distribution of the questionnaires, and collected the blood samples. CDH, LFH, and NK carried out all laboratory analyses. MM wrote the first draft of the manuscript and performed the data analysis and visualization, with the assistance of MA. All authors contributed to the interpretation of data and provided critical feedback on the paper. All authors had full access to the data and accepted responsibility for submission. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version. The questionnaires (English version) used in this study are available in the supplementary material. De-identified data can be available upon request; however, some limitations apply to data accessibility due to the EU General Data Protection Regulation. Contact the corresponding author for elaboration on these limitations and the specification of conditions for accessing certain data.
Funding Information:
This work was supported by Greenland Research Council and the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources PhD-grant (grant no. 80.39 ) and Research Promotion Grant (grant no. FF2022/I/d2c0f ), Kong Christian den Tiendes Fond (grant no. 35/2022 ), Grosserer L.F. Foghts Fond (grant no. 22.288 ), and contributions from the Department of Clinical Microbiology and the Department of Infectious Diseases, Rigshospitalet University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors
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