Long COVID

Long COVID describes the symptoms that continue or develop after your initial COVID-19 symptoms. You can experience these symptoms more than 12 weeks after you are first infected.

What is long COVID

You should expect to recover from the first signs and symptoms of COVID-19 within 2 to 4 weeks. You should be back to all activities you were doing before COVID-19 within 12 weeks. Yet, some people report a range of symptoms beyond the standard 12-week period.

Long COVID is a general term used to describe symptoms that continue or develop beyond the standard time of recovery.

In New Zealand, we divide long COVID into 2 groups:

Ongoing symptomatic COVID-19 — you can experience signs and symptoms of COVID-19 for 4 to 12 weeks after your initial infection.
Post-COVID-19 syndrome — when you have signs and symptoms that develop during or after an infection. These continue for more than 12 weeks and are not explained by any other conditions.

Long COVID can affect any system of the body, and the severity of symptoms may fluctuate over time. The type of symptoms someone experiences may also vary over time. Symptoms often improve over time.

Who can get long COVID

Anyone can develop long COVID, but it is more common if you had severe symptoms when you first got sick.

A second COVID-19 infection could trigger long COVID.

You are at more risk of getting long COVID if you:

are aged 50 years and over
have more than 1 underlying chronic medical condition
are obese
are female
had many symptoms in your initial infection
were admitted to hospital with acute COVID-19.

Long COVID is less common in children and adolescents.

Long COVID symptoms

Symptoms of long COVID can persist for weeks or sometimes months. Some of the more commonly reported symptoms are below.

General symptoms include:

fatigue
fever
abdominal pain
joint pain
muscle pain
nausea and vomiting
diarrhoea
weight loss
reduced appetite
sleep issues.

Cardiovascular symptoms include:

chest tightness
chest pain
skipped, extra or irregular heartbeats (palpitations).

Respiratory symptoms include:

breathlessness
cough.

Neurological symptoms include:

loss of concentration or memory issues (cognitive impairment, 'brain fog')
headache
sleep disturbance
pins and needles and numbness
dizziness
delirium (in older people)
lack of strength in arms or legs (mobility impairment)
visual disturbance.

Ear, nose and throat symptoms include:

tinnitus
earache
sore throat
dizziness
loss of taste or smell
blocked nose (nasal congestion).

Avoiding long COVID

Vaccination

The best way to prevent long COVID is to prevent infection with COVID-19. Vaccines reduce the risk of long COVID by lowering the chances of getting COVID-19.

There is also evidence that vaccination reduces the risk of people who get COVID-19 going on to develop long COVID.

Vaccination against COVID-19 is available to all New Zealand adults and children 5 years and over.

COVID-19 vaccines

Other ways to protect yourself

To protect yourself, your whānau, and your community, it is important to keep up the healthy habits we know.

Along with staying up to date with your vaccinations, it is a good idea to:

stay home if you are sick
limit time in crowded indoor spaces
wear a face mask in indoor public places
physically distance when indoors
improve ventilation
cough or sneeze into your elbow
wash or sanitise your hands.

Protect yourself and others

Managing long COVID

Researchers and healthcare providers are still working out the best ways to manage long COVID. There are currently no specific treatments.

Your healthcare provider can help you manage the symptoms that affect you the most. Talk to them if you get any new symptoms or your symptoms get worse.

Your health provider can connect you to support services including: