Publication date: Jul 09, 2026
Long COVID is an increasingly recognized health concern in older adults, yet data from Latin America remain limited. Older adults may be particularly vulnerable to post-COVID sequelae because of frailty, multimorbidity, and reduced physiological reserve. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of strict long COVID among older Ecuadorian adults and to characterize persistent post-COVID symptoms, clinical correlates, and functional/cognitive worsening. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 1,050 community-dwelling adults aged 65 years or older with PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in Quito, Ecuador. Data were collected through structured face-to-face interviews and cognitive screening. Strict long COVID was defined as symptoms persisting for more than 12 weeks after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Symptoms lasting 4-12 weeks were classified as persistent post-COVID symptoms but were not considered strict long COVID. Multivariable logistic regression was used to evaluate factors associated with strict long COVID. The mean age was 74. 2 +/- 7. 5 years, and 565 participants (53. 8%) were women. Overall, 191 participants met criteria for strict long COVID, corresponding to a prevalence of 18. 2% (95% CI, 16. 0-20. 6). Persistent post-COVID symptoms lasting 4-6 weeks and 7-12 weeks were reported by 401 (38. 2%) and 458 (43. 6%) participants, respectively. Participants with strict long COVID had higher frequencies of dyspnea, cognitive impairment, sleep disturbance, myalgia, depression, anxiety, and difficulty sleeping. Functional/cognitive worsening was more frequent among participants with strict long COVID than among those without strict long COVID (53. 4% vs. 36. 6%; p
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Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | long COVID |
| disease | MESH | frailty |
| disease | MESH | SARS-CoV-2 infection |
| pathway | REACTOME | SARS-CoV-2 Infection |
| disease | MESH | face |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Methionine |
| disease | MESH | dyspnea |
| disease | MESH | cognitive impairment |
| disease | MESH | myalgia |
| disease | MESH | anxiety |