A person’s sex may affect their risk of developing Long COVID
Some women taking part in RECOVER research were more likely to experience Long COVID compared to men.
Women could have as high as a 31% higher risk of developing Long COVID compared to men according to a recent RECOVER adult observational cohort study. This study’s findings were based on symptoms and other personal health data reported by over 12,200 people from 33 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
RECOVER researchers found that women experienced a higher risk of developing Long COVID compared to men regardless of their race, ethnicity, which variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus caused their COVID-19 infection, and whether they had to be hospitalized while they were sick with COVID-19. However, women between the ages of 40 and 55 experienced the highest risk—up to 45%—of developing Long COVID compared to men.
A report of this study and its findings, titled “Sex Differences in Long COVID,” has been published in JAMA Network Open. According to publication co-author Dr. Dimpy Shah, MD, PhD (UT Health San Antonio), “these findings show that patients and health care teams should consider the differences in Long COVID risk as it relates to sex assigned at birth. Understanding these differences can help us recognize and treat patients with Long COVID more effectively.”
Read a press release (via UT Health San Antonio) about what the RECOVER researchers who worked on this study did, what they learned, and why those findings are important.
Article: DP Shah et al., Sex Differences in Long COVID, JAMA Network Open, 2025.