late complications of covid-19; an umbrella review on current systematic reviews

Introduction: several clinical manifestations have been discovered for covid-19 since the emergence of sars-cov-2, which can be classified into early, medium, and long-term complications. however, late complications can be present after recovery from acute covid-19 illness. the present study aims to comprehensively review the available evidence of late complications related to covid-19. method: a search was conducted, using keywords, through electronic databases, which included scopus, web of science, pubmed, and embase up to august 29, 2022. study selection was performed according to a strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (prisma) checklist was followed, and studies were appraised using the national institute of health (nih) quality assessment and risk of bias tool. results: in total, 50 studies were included, and nine distinct covid-19 late complication categories were identified. a review of these studies revealed that neurologic and psychiatric (n=41), respiratory (n=27), musculoskeletal and rheumatologic (n=22), cardiovascular (n=9), and hepatic and gastrointestinal (n=6) complications were the most prevalent complications of long covid-19. conclusion: almost all human body systems are affected by late complications of covid-19 with different severity and prevalence. fatigue and some other neuropsychiatric symptoms are the most common late complications among long covid-19 patients. respiratory symptoms including dyspnea (during exercise), cough, and chest tightness were the next most prevalent long-term complications of covid-19. since these complications are persistent and late, being aware of the signs and symptoms is essential for the healthcare providers and patients.