Mapping Long COVID: Spatial and Social Inequities Across the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Long COVID affects a substantial portion of the U.S. population, yet its spatiotemporal distribution remains poorly characterized. The emergence of the Omicron variant and persistent sociodemographic disparities may contribute to regional variation in long COVID risk. Understanding the patterns of long COVID is essential to implementing targeted and equitable public health interventions.

Methods

This retrospective study utilized data from the National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C), covering 5,652,474 COVID-19 cases and 41,694 long COVID cases across 1,063 U.S. counties from 2021 to 2024. Temporal patterns of long COVID were analyzed before and after the Omicron variant's emergence, and spatial patterns were assessed using Moran's I and Getis statistics. Bayesia

SUBMITTER: Chen Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12407596 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature