Assessment of Persistence Symptoms in Recovered COVID-19 Patients by Yorkshire Rehabilitation Scale (C19‐YRS): A Cross-Sectional Study from Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: Earlier back at the beginning of COVID-19, the acute phase of infection was variable from one patient to another causing different symptoms. However, many patients are still suffering from Post COVID-19 Syndrome. Hence, this study aimed to assess the persistence of symptoms in patients who recovered from COVID-19 in the Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia. Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study of 413 confirmed PCR test-positive covid-19 patients enrolled in this study from the Ministry of Health Electronic Surveillance System (HESN). The Yorkshire Rehabilitation Scale (C19-YRS) checklist was used to record patients’ symptoms, functioning, and disability. Data were analyzed by the SPSS program. Functional and patient-reported outcome measures were correlated with certain items from C19-YRS, the severity of symptoms. Its distribution-based methods were used for responsiveness over time. The scaling and targeting assumptions were satisfied, and internal consistency was high (Cronbach’s α = 0.843). Results: After 4 weeks of infection, 50% of patients reported persistent symptoms such as laryngeal complications, 43.8% Swallowing changes, 31.3% fatigue, 18.8% pain, 18.8% loss of appetite, 12.5% breathlessness, and 6.3% depression, Moreover, 18.8% of patients experienced reduced mobility. At the beginning of the COVID-19 infection, fever was the most common complaint 332 (80.4%), followed by 267 (64.6%) fatigue, and loss of smell 230 (55.7%). The severity of the breathlessness symptoms was exaggerated during the patients’ walking or climbing stairs. Patients who were admitted to an intensive care unit (n = 5) were significantly elderly (P < 0.001), with chronic diseases (P < 0.01) mainly Diabetes Mellitus and Hypertension. Conclusion: The study examined the severity of post covid syndrome by patients’ responsiveness to the scale items in C19-YRS. The majority of COVID-19 symptoms were still present but significantly reduced after 4 weeks of infection. Follow-up and long-term management of physical and psychological symptoms of hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients are very important.