Introduction
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, (SARS-CoV-2,) caused an influx of
patients with acute disease characterized by a variety of symptoms termed COVID-19 disease, with some patients going on to develop post-acute COVID-19 syndrome. Individual
factors like sex or coping styles are associated with a person’s disease experience and quality of life. Individual differences in coping styles used to manage COVID-19 related stress
correlate with physical and mental health outcomes. Our study sought to understand the
relationship between COVID-19 symptoms, severity of acute disease, and coping profiles.
Methods
An online survey to assess symptoms, functional status, and recovery in a large group of
patients was nationally distributed online. The survey asked about symptoms, course of illness, and included the Brief-COPE and the adapted Social Relationship Inventory. We
used descriptive and cluster analyses to characterize patterns of survey responses.
Results
976 patients were included in the analysis. The most common symptoms reported by the
patients were fatigue (72%), cough (71%), body aches/joint pain (66%), headache (62%),
and fever/chills (62%). 284 participants reported PACS. We described three different coping
profiles: outward, inward, and dynamic copers.
Kathryn W. Hendrickson, Ramona O. Hopkins, Danielle L. Groat, Stephanie
C. Stokes, Fiona M. Schroeder, Jorie M. Butler, Eliotte L. Hirshberg
Disease Category: Infectious disease
Disease Name: Coronavirus
Age Range: Unknown
Sex: Either
Nature of Intervention:
- Consumers (patients)
- Patient perspectives
- Survey
An online survey to assess symptoms, functional status, and recovery in a large group of
patients was nationally distributed online. The survey asked about symptoms, course of illness, and included the Brief-COPE and the adapted Social Relationship Inventory. We
used descriptive and cluster analyses to characterize patterns of survey responses.