Anxiety and depression symptoms among patients with long COVID: a retrospective cohort study

Patients suffering from post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) have a higher prevalence of anxiety and depression than the general population. The long-term trajectory of these sequelae is still unfolding. To assess the burden of anxiety and depression among patients presenting to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC) post-COVID-19 clinic, we analyzed how patient factors influenced Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scores. In this retrospective cohort study, the GAD-7 and PHQ-9 questionnaire scores of patients presenting to the UIHC post-COVID clinic between March 2021–February 2022 ( N = 455) were compared to the scores of a sample of patients presenting to the general internal medicine (GIM) clinic during the same period ( N = 94). Our analysis showed that patients with an absent history of depression on their electronic medical record (EMR) problem list scored significantly higher on the GAD-7 (mean difference –1.62, 95% CI –3.12 to –0.12, p = 0.034) and PHQ-9 (mean difference –4.45, 95% CI –5.53 to –3.37, p