Associations Between COVID-19 Vaccination Status and Persistent Symptoms: A Prospective Study of Reproductive-Age Women

Objective

The present study was conducted to determine the relationship between prolonged complaints of women who had COVID-19 infection and whose symptoms persisted and their vaccination status against COVID-19.

Methods

This prospective observational study consisted of three groups [The Unvaccinated Group (Control Group: 89), the BioNTech Vaccine Group (114 people), and the Sinovac Vaccine Group (84 people)]. In this study, which included 287 women, prolonged COVID-19 symptoms in their spouses were also questioned. Information was obtained from the participants in the form of questions and answers under outpatient clinical conditions 2 months after their recovery. Women between the ages of 18–45 who had regular menstrual periods in the last 6 months before the pandemic, those whose COVID-19 test was negative and those who received a single dose of vaccine in the vaccinated group were included in the study.

Results

The rates of loss of taste and prolonged symptoms of high fever in Sinovac-vaccinated participants were lower than in the other groups in the present study (p < 0.05). A total of 40.5% of those who were vaccinated with Sinovac after COVID-19 had a menstrual cycle length of every 28–40 days, which was higher than the percentage of participants in other groups, and 40.5% of those in this group did not have menstrual pain. Additionally, the menstrual period length of 62.3% of the participants who received the BioNTech vaccine increased (p < 0.05). This increase is higher than the participants in the other group.

Conclusion

The study indicated that certain prolonged symptoms of COVID-19 infection were less common among participants vaccinated with Sinovac. In this group, the menstrual cycle length increased, while menstrual pain decreased.