Boufidou, Fotini, Medić, Snežana, Lampropoulou, Vicky et al. · International journal of molecular sciences · 2023 · DOI
This review examined how repeated COVID-19 infections might be connected to long COVID—the persistent symptoms some people experience after infection. The researchers found that the risk of developing long COVID and related health problems increases with each infection someone has, particularly in older adults. While vaccination appears protective, more research is needed to understand how to best prevent long COVID after reinfection.
Understanding the relationship between reinfection and long COVID is critical for patient care and prevention strategies, particularly for vulnerable populations. This review highlights that cumulative infection burden may drive persistent illness severity, supporting the urgency of reinfection prevention and informing discussions about vaccination timing and booster strategies. The findings underscore why ongoing research into long COVID mechanisms and recovery trajectories remains essential.
This review does not establish causal mechanisms by which reinfection directly triggers long COVID, nor does it provide definitive evidence that vaccination prevents long COVID in all populations. The authors explicitly note that stronger comparative observational studies and randomized trials are required for conclusive evidence, meaning the protective role of vaccination remains supported but not definitively proven. Correlation between reinfection frequency and long COVID burden does not exclude other confounding factors affecting both variables.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
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