{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,28]],"date-time":"2026-05-28T18:05:56Z","timestamp":1779991556930,"version":"3.53.1"},"reference-count":39,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,28]],"date-time":"2026-05-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779926400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100015691","name":"Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["HHSN272201400007C"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["HHSN272201400007C"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100015691","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100015691","name":"Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["75N93021C0045"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["75N93021C0045"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100015691","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosglobalpublichealth.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLOS Glob Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Since emerging in December 2019, SARS-CoV-2 has led to significant morbidity and mortality globally. While much is known about SARS-CoV-2 infection and sequelae, fewer studies have been conducted in sub-Saharan Africa. This study was conducted to characterize acute and persistent symptoms of COVID-19 among adults and children in rural Zambia. From December 2020 to March 2022, individuals of all ages with acute SARS-CoV-2 infection (n\u2009=\u2009132) were recruited into a cohort study. For comparison, individuals with acute influenza infection (n\u2009=\u200956) were also recruited. Participants were followed at 30, 90, 180, and 365 days. Most adult COVID-19 participants (median age: 36 years; 54% male; 11% had received the COVID-19 vaccine) were symptomatic at enrollment (92%), but few were hospitalized (9%). The most common symptoms were cough, headache, fever, and body aches. Most symptoms resolved by 30 days; the proportion reporting symptoms at follow-up visits ranged from 11% to 19%. Common symptoms at follow-up visits included cough, runny nose, headache, body aches, and fatigue. Similarly, most child COVID-19 participants (86%) were symptomatic at enrollment (median age: 13 years; 57% male; none had received the COVID-19 vaccine) and none were hospitalized. The most common symptoms were cough, fever, headache, and runny nose with most symptoms resolving by 30 days. The proportion reporting symptoms at follow-up visits ranged from 13% to 20%. Common symptoms included cough, fever, headache and runny nose. For comparison, adult and child participants with influenza virus infection were evaluated. The proportion reporting symptoms at follow-up visits ranged from 16% to 32%. This study adds to the literature on the clinical characteristics of acute SARS-CoV-2 infection and persistent symptoms in the first two years of the pandemic in an underrepresented region.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pgph.0006463","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,28]],"date-time":"2026-05-28T17:33:24Z","timestamp":1779989604000},"page":"e0006463","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pgph.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Characterizing acute and persistent symptoms of COVID-19 among adults and children in rural Zambia, 2020\u20132022"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"6","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8512-8326","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Catherine G.","family":"Sutcliffe","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Pamela","family":"Sinywimaanzi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mutinta","family":"Hamahuwa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Juliet","family":"Morales","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Adriana","family":"van de Guchte","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Morris","family":"Sianyanda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zain","family":"Khalil","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Passwell","family":"Munachoonga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ana Silvia","family":"Gonzalez-Reiche","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mathias","family":"Muleka","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Katherine Z. 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