Clinical profile of pain in post-COVID-19 patients: systematic review

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Although research shows that pain is more frequent during COVID-19 infection, little is known about the characterization of pain and factors that influence its permanence after infection. Therefore, the objective of this study was to describe the clinical profile of pain in post-COVID-19 patients. CONTENTS: This is a systematic review conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations. Articles were searched from November 2021 to November 2022 in the Pubmed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane and PsycINFO databases. Five observational studies were included for qualitative synthesis. There was an increase in the intensity of pain in all regions of the body during the infection when compared to the pre-infection state, remaining after the infection. The most reported post-COVID-19 pains are: neuropathic pain, generalized pain and pain in the cervical region. The average duration of post-COVID-19 pain was six months. CONCLUSION: There is persistence of pain after infection with the new coronavirus, with the presence of “new pain” and “new chronic pain”, and the worsening of pain in specific groups that had COVID-19.