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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Journal of Clinical Medicine

Six-Month Trajectories of Symptoms, Perceived Recovery, and Functional Health in Ecuadorian Adults with COVID-19

  • Guido Mascialino1
  • Alberto Rodríguez-Lorenzana1
  • Trinidad Abiuso1
  • Jack D. Watson2,3
  • Paul B. Perrin4
  • Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla5,6
  • Freddy Palma7
  • Cesar Parra-Gaete8
8 affiliations
  1. 1Health Sciences Department, Public University of Navarre, 31006 Pamplona, Spain
  2. 2Department of Veterans Affairs, Informatics, Decision Enhancement, and Analytic Sciences Center, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA
  3. 3Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Epidemiology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA
  4. 4School of Data Science, Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
  5. 5Department of Cell Biology and Histology, University of the Basque Country, 48940 Leioa, Spain
  6. 6IKERBASQUE—Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
  7. 7Departamento de Salud y Seguridad Ocupacional, Universidad de Las Américas, Quito 170513, Ecuador
  8. 8Grupo de Investigación Bienestar, Salud y Sociedad, Escuela de Psicología y Educación, Universidad de Las Américas, Quito 170513, Ecuador
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Abstract

Background/Objectives: Most longitudinal evidence on post-acute COVID-19 comes from hospitalized patients in high-income countries and less is known about community samples in low- and middle-income settings. This study examined changes in perceived recovery, symptom burden, general health perception, and functional difficulties over six months in Ecuadorian adults with confirmed COVID-19. Methods: In a prospective observational cohort in Quito, Ecuador, 120 adults with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 were assessed at baseline (within four weeks of diagnosis) and again three and six months after the baseline assessment; 91 completed all three assessments. The Spanish-language ISARIC follow-up survey covered 39 symptoms, perceived recovery, the EQ-5D-5L and EQ-VAS, and six Washington Group functioning items rated retrospectively for the pre-COVID period and currently. Analyses were exploratory and descriptive, and all p-values are nominal and unadjusted for multiple comparisons. Results: Participants’ perceived complete recovery improved (χ2 = 15.24, p < 0.001), as did perceived general health (F(2, 178) = 5.80, p = 0.004). Chest pain, palpitations, muscle weakness, confusion, tinnitus, and diarrhea declined over follow-up. At six months, 37.4% still reported headaches, 35.2% fatigue, 35.2% confusion or inattention, and 25.3% sleep disturbance. Among EQ-5D-5L domains, only pain/discomfort improved (p = 0.012). Vision, walking, memory, and communication declined from pre-COVID to baseline and improved between baseline and six months; pre-COVID and six-month levels were not compared directly. Conclusions: Recovery over six months was gradual but incomplete, with a substantial minority reporting ongoing or recurrent symptoms at six months. These findings describe post-acute symptom burden following confirmed COVID-19 rather than formally diagnosed post-COVID-19 condition.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{mascialino2026sixmonth,
  title = {{Six-Month Trajectories of Symptoms, Perceived Recovery, and Functional Health in Ecuadorian Adults with COVID-19}},
  author = {Guido Mascialino and Alberto Rodríguez-Lorenzana and Trinidad Abiuso and Jack D. Watson and Paul B. Perrin and Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla and Freddy Palma and Cesar Parra-Gaete},
  journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3390/jcm15207991},
  url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/20/7991},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Six-Month Trajectories of Symptoms, Perceived Recovery, and Functional Health in Ecuadorian Adults with COVID-19
AU  - Guido Mascialino
AU  - Alberto Rodríguez-Lorenzana
AU  - Trinidad Abiuso
AU  - Jack D. Watson
AU  - Paul B. Perrin
AU  - Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla
AU  - Freddy Palma
AU  - Cesar Parra-Gaete
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/01
JO  - Journal of Clinical Medicine
DO  - 10.3390/jcm15207991
UR  - https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/20/7991
AB  - Background/Objectives: Most longitudinal evidence on post-acute COVID-19 comes from hospitalized patients in high-income countries and less is known about community samples in low- and middle-income settings. This study examined changes in perceived recovery, symptom burden, general health perception, and functional difficulties over six months in Ecuadorian adults with confirmed COVID-19. Methods: In a prospective observational cohort in Quito, Ecuador, 120 adults with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 were assessed at baseline (within four weeks of diagnosis) and again three and six months after the baseline assessment; 91 completed all three assessments. The Spanish-language ISARIC follow-up survey covered 39 symptoms, perceived recovery, the EQ-5D-5L and EQ-VAS, and six Washington Group functioning items rated retrospectively for the pre-COVID period and currently. Analyses were exploratory and descriptive, and all p-values are nominal and unadjusted for multiple comparisons. Results: Participants’ perceived complete recovery improved (χ2 = 15.24, p < 0.001), as did perceived general health (F(2, 178) = 5.80, p = 0.004). Chest pain, palpitations, muscle weakness, confusion, tinnitus, and diarrhea declined over follow-up. At six months, 37.4% still reported headaches, 35.2% fatigue, 35.2% confusion or inattention, and 25.3% sleep disturbance. Among EQ-5D-5L domains, only pain/discomfort improved (p = 0.012). Vision, walking, memory, and communication declined from pre-COVID to baseline and improved between baseline and six months; pre-COVID and six-month levels were not compared directly. Conclusions: Recovery over six months was gradual but incomplete, with a substantial minority reporting ongoing or recurrent symptoms at six months. These findings describe post-acute symptom burden following confirmed COVID-19 rather than formally diagnosed post-COVID-19 condition.
SN  - 2077-0383
ER  -