Short and Long Term Symptoms After Omicron Infection in the Faroe Islands

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a high disease burden worldwide, both during the acute disease phase and a large group of infected suffering from Long Covid. Long Covid has been subject to a lot of research, even though there is still much not understood. However, the need for time to pass before symptoms can be assessed limits research into Long Covid on a longer timescale.

The worldwide pandemic has shifted after the emergence of the Omicron variant. The number of confirmed COVID cases worldwide has risen to unprecedented levels. Yet, hospitalizations and death do not increase at the same level as with previous variants.

The observed shift in the pandemic with the increasing number of infections with the Omicron variant leads to the urgent question about Long Covid after Omicron infection. This rise has also taken place in the Faroe Islands, with many infections during December 2021 and January 2022. The majority of infections during January 2022 in the Faroe Islands are expected to be of the Omicron variant, presenting the opportunity to investigate symptoms after infection with the Omicron variant.

In this study, we will invite all infected with COVID-19 during January 2022 in the Faroe Islands to answer an online survey regarding symptoms. This survey will be sent out once a month for a total of six times, both focusing on acute symptoms and Long Covid symptoms.

Concurrently, we will send an online survey to Faroese inhabitants recruited in two separate random COVID-19 serological surveys during 2020, which will act as controls.

The knowledge gathered during this study will rapidly bring understanding to the urgent question of Long Covid after Omicron infections. We know that the Omicron variant leads to fewer hospitalizations and death than previous variants, yet the question of Long Covid is still unanswered, and needs rapid answers.