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Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Examining Well-Being and Cognitive Function in People with Long Covid and ME/CFS, and Age-Matched Healthy Controls
T2 - A Case-Case-Control Study
AU - Sanal-Hayes, Nilihan E.M.
AU - Mclaughlin, Marie
AU - Hayes, Lawrence D.
AU - Berry, Ethan C.J.
AU - Sculthorpe, Nicholas F.
PY - 2025/6/1
Y1 - 2025/6/1
N2 - Well-being and cognitive function had not previously been compared between people with long COVID and people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Therefore, this study examined well-being and cognitive function in people with long COVID (∼16 months illness duration; n= 17) and ME/CFS (∼16 years illness duration; n=24), versus age-matched healthy controls (n=16). Well-being was examined using several questionnaires, namely the Health Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Post-exertional malaise (PEM), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), European Quality of Life-5 Domains (EQ-5D), MRC Dyspnoea, Self-Efficacy (SELTC), The Edinburgh Neurosymptoms Questionnaire (ENS), General Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9). Cognitive function was examined using Single Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), Stroop test, and Trails A and B. These were delivered via a mobile application (app) built specifically for this remote data collection. The main findings of the present investigation were that people with ME/CFS and people with long COVID were generally comparable on all well-being and cognitive function measures, but self-reported worse values for pain, fatigue, Post-exertional malaise, sleep quality, general well-being in relation to mobility, usual activities, self-care, breathlessness, neurological symptoms, self-efficacy, and other well-being such as anxiety and depression, compared to controls. There was no effect of group for cognitive function measures. These data suggest that both people with long COVID and people with ME/CFS have similar impairment on well-being measures examined herein. Therefore, interventions that target well-being of people with ME/CFS and long COVID are required. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.]
AB - Well-being and cognitive function had not previously been compared between people with long COVID and people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Therefore, this study examined well-being and cognitive function in people with long COVID (∼16 months illness duration; n= 17) and ME/CFS (∼16 years illness duration; n=24), versus age-matched healthy controls (n=16). Well-being was examined using several questionnaires, namely the Health Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), Post-exertional malaise (PEM), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), European Quality of Life-5 Domains (EQ-5D), MRC Dyspnoea, Self-Efficacy (SELTC), The Edinburgh Neurosymptoms Questionnaire (ENS), General Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9). Cognitive function was examined using Single Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), Stroop test, and Trails A and B. These were delivered via a mobile application (app) built specifically for this remote data collection. The main findings of the present investigation were that people with ME/CFS and people with long COVID were generally comparable on all well-being and cognitive function measures, but self-reported worse values for pain, fatigue, Post-exertional malaise, sleep quality, general well-being in relation to mobility, usual activities, self-care, breathlessness, neurological symptoms, self-efficacy, and other well-being such as anxiety and depression, compared to controls. There was no effect of group for cognitive function measures. These data suggest that both people with long COVID and people with ME/CFS have similar impairment on well-being measures examined herein. Therefore, interventions that target well-being of people with ME/CFS and long COVID are required. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.]
KW - Chronic fatigue syndrome
KW - Cognitive function
KW - Long COVID
KW - Myalgic encephalomyelitis
KW - Post-exertional malaise
KW - Well-being
U2 - 10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.04.041
DO - 10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.04.041
M3 - Journal article
VL - 138
SP - 1029
EP - 1037
JO - The American Journal of Medicine
JF - The American Journal of Medicine
SN - 0002-9343
IS - 6
ER -