In Italy, a large proportion of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) presented with symptoms (71.4% of 31 845 confirmed cases as of June 3, 2020).1 Common symptoms include cough, fever, dyspnea, musculoskeletal symptoms (myalgia, joint pain, fatigue), gastrointestinal symptoms, and anosmia/dysgeusia.2-4 However, information is lacking on symptoms that persist after recovery. We assessed persistent symptoms in patients who were discharged from the hospital after recovery from COVID-19.
In the waning phase of the pandemic, beginning on April 21, 2020, the Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS in Rome, Italy, established a postacute outpatient service for individuals discharged from the hospital after recovery from COVID-19. All patients who met World Health Organization criteria for discontinuation of quarantine (no fever for 3 consecutive days, improvement in other symptoms, and 2 negative test results for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 [SARS-CoV-2] 24 hours apart) were followed up. At enrollment in the study, real-time reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction for SARS-CoV-2 was performed and patients with a negative test result were included.