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Research Snapshot Theater: Infectious Disease/Epidemiology - Outcomes, Adult

Initial Hospitalization and the Risk of Long COVID

Sunday, March 22, 2026
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM Central Time
Location: Connections Central - RST 05
  • HS

    Hayder Said, , MBChB

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.

  • JP

    Joseph Parrillo, MD, MCCM

    Admin Dir CV Rsrch Database
    Hackensack Meridian Health Hackensack University Medical Center

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • DL

    David Landers, MD, FACC, FSCAI

    Interim Director, Division of Cardiology Executive Director of Cardiovascular Partners (CVP)
    Hackensack Meridian Health Hackensack University Medical Center

    Disclosure information not submitted.

  • SH

    Steven Hollenberg, MD, FACC, FAHA

    Emory University Hospital, Georgia

    Disclosure information not submitted.

Introduction: Following the COVID pandemic, as many as 7% of patients have been left with chronic systemic conditions designated as “long COVID.” We assembled a large database of COVID patients in a single institution and identified those with long COVID. We now present associations between initial disposition and subsequent long COVID.


Methods: COVID patients (n=88,578) were identified by diagnostic codes and confirmed with serology. Patients with long COVID were identified by ICD-10 coding and then curated to include only patients presenting > 90 days but < 18 months after initial infection. Long COVID (n=409) in the following categories: ambulatory, treated and released from the ED, observed in the ED, admitted, and admitted to the ICU - were compared to patients who did not develop long COVID (n=88,169). Proportions were compared with z-tests.


Results: COVID patients admitted to the hospital and those admitted to the ICU had substantially higher rates of subsequent long COVID. Patients sent home from the ED and those seen in ambulatory settings had significantly lower rates.


Conclusions: Long COVID is a heterogenous syndrome whose pathophysiology is uncertain. These findings from a large dataset suggest that severity of the initial COVID episode, as inferred from need for hospital and ICU admission, is predictive of long COVID. More granular analysis of factors at initial presentation that correlate with subsequent long COVID could help guide studies of its pathogenesis.