Chiara Biserni, Bob O De Groot, Anselm B M Fuermaier, Dick de Waard, Stefanie Enriquez-Geppert
{"title":"Post-COVID fatigue: Reduced quality-of-life associated with clinically relevant fatigue in mild disease courses.","authors":"Chiara Biserni, Bob O De Groot, Anselm B M Fuermaier, Dick de Waard, Stefanie Enriquez-Geppert","doi":"10.1080/09602011.2024.2314874","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Fatigue is a pervasive symptom experienced by many individuals after COVID-19. Despite its widespread occurrence, fatigue remains a poorly understood and complex phenomenon. Our aim is to evaluate the subjective experience of mental fatigue after COVID-19 and to assess its significance for daily life functioning. In this online questionnaire study (<i>N</i> = 220), the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), World Health Organization Quality-of-Life assessment (WHOQoL) and a subjective severity rating of the COVID-19 disease progression were used. For our statistical analyses we utilized independent samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA with post-hoc analyses, and a multiple regression. As expected our findings revealed the COVID group reported significantly higher levels of subjective fatigue compared to the control group. Moreover, there was a significant difference between experienced fatigue across the four severity groups. Participants who had a milder course of disease also experienced severe subjective fatigue. Subjective fatigue explained 40% variance in quality-of-life. In conclusion, severe subjective fatigue appears to be associated with increased self-reported COVID-19 symptom severity and lower quality-of-life but is already observable in milder cases. This underscores, firstly, the importance of considering also less severe cases and, secondly, the need to develop rehabilitation and psychological interventions for fatigue.</p>","PeriodicalId":54729,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychological Rehabilitation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.7000,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Neuropsychological Rehabilitation","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09602011.2024.2314874","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2024/2/21 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"NEUROSCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Fatigue is a pervasive symptom experienced by many individuals after COVID-19. Despite its widespread occurrence, fatigue remains a poorly understood and complex phenomenon. Our aim is to evaluate the subjective experience of mental fatigue after COVID-19 and to assess its significance for daily life functioning. In this online questionnaire study (N = 220), the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), World Health Organization Quality-of-Life assessment (WHOQoL) and a subjective severity rating of the COVID-19 disease progression were used. For our statistical analyses we utilized independent samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA with post-hoc analyses, and a multiple regression. As expected our findings revealed the COVID group reported significantly higher levels of subjective fatigue compared to the control group. Moreover, there was a significant difference between experienced fatigue across the four severity groups. Participants who had a milder course of disease also experienced severe subjective fatigue. Subjective fatigue explained 40% variance in quality-of-life. In conclusion, severe subjective fatigue appears to be associated with increased self-reported COVID-19 symptom severity and lower quality-of-life but is already observable in milder cases. This underscores, firstly, the importance of considering also less severe cases and, secondly, the need to develop rehabilitation and psychological interventions for fatigue.
期刊介绍:
Neuropsychological Rehabilitation publishes human experimental and clinical research related to rehabilitation, recovery of function, and brain plasticity. The journal is aimed at clinicians who wish to inform their practice in the light of the latest scientific research; at researchers in neurorehabilitation; and finally at researchers in cognitive neuroscience and related fields interested in the mechanisms of recovery and rehabilitation. Papers on neuropsychological assessment will be considered, and special topic reviews (2500-5000 words) addressing specific key questions in rehabilitation, recovery and brain plasticity will also be welcomed. The latter will enter a fast-track refereeing process.