{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]],"date-time":"2026-09-23T20:04:06Z","timestamp":1790193846182,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"Medwave Estudios Limitada","issue":"08","content-domain":{"domain":["www.medwave.cl"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Medwave"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction Post-COVID-19 condition affects approximately 6% of individuals globally. Most evidence is based on hospitalized patients and is from countries with relatively low vaccination coverage. This study estimates the prevalence of symptoms compatible with post-COVID-19 and explores symptom patterns in a population-based sample from Chile, a country with high vaccination coverage. Moreover, it examines their associations with daily activities and demographic, social, and clinical factors.\n\nMethods A cross-sectional study was conducted in May 2024 in two Chilean Cities, involving 654 participants (88.5% response rate) aged \u2265 seven years, from randomly selected households. Ten post-COVID-19 symptoms that persisted for \u2265 three months were collected. Latent class analysis identified symptom patterns.\n\nResults Among 277 participants with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, 114 reported at least one symptom lasting \u2265 3 months. Population-weighted prevalence of at least one post-COVID-19 symptom was 17.4% in the general population and 40.7% among individuals with prior COVID-19. Among those with post-COVID-19 symptoms, 40.1% reported a reduction in daily activities. Three classes were explored: class 1 (38.4%) characterized by fatigue, ageusia\/anosmia, and muscular\/joint pain; class 2 (40.7%) with predominant cardiorespiratory symptoms; and class 3 (20.9%) with multisystemic symptoms. Class three was associated with a higher frequency of comorbidities (particularly diabetes), hospitalization, multiple COVID-19 episodes, and Aboriginal affiliation. Classes 2 and 3 were independently associated with younger age and diabetes, class 2 was additionally associated with lower educational attainment and lower BMI, while class 3 was additionally associated with Aboriginal affiliation.\n\nConclusions This population-based study reveals a substantial burden of at least one post-COVID-19 symptom, with distinct symptom classes highlighting the need for tailored interventions. These findings underscore the importance of targeted public health policies and personalized clinical approaches, particularly for severe symptom classes that impact quality of life and contribute critical data from Latin America to the global understanding of post-COVID-19 condition.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.5867\/medwave.2026.08.3234","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]],"date-time":"2026-09-23T19:26:48Z","timestamp":1790191608000},"page":"e3234-e3234","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5867\/medwave.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Post-COVID symptoms prevalence, latent class pattern, and functional impact: A population-based cross-sectional study in two Chilean cities, 2024"],"prefix":"10.5867","volume":"26","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3578-459X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Paola","family":"Rubilar","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Centro de Epidemiolog\u00eda y Pol\u00edticas de Salud, Facultad de Medicina Cl\u00ednica Alemana, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1306-3791","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mauricio","family":"Apablaza","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3642-6965","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Muriel","family":"Ram\u00edrez-Santana","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Salud P\u00fablica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Cat\u00f3lica del Norte, Coquimbo, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8119-5417","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lina J.","family":"Cort\u00e9s","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto de Ciencias e Innovaci\u00f3n en Medicina, Facultad de Medicina Cl\u00ednica Alemana, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5397-2506","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Loreto","family":"Nu\u00f1ez-Franz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Salud P\u00fablica, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Talca, Talca, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"3888","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]]},"container-title":["Medwave"],"original-title":["Prevalencia de s\u00edntomas post-COVID, agrupamiento sintom\u00e1tico e impacto funcional: Estudio transversal de base poblacional en dos ciudades chilenas, 2024"],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]],"date-time":"2026-09-23T19:26:48Z","timestamp":1790191608000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.medwave.cl\/investigacion\/estudios\/3234.html?lang"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"08","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.5867\/medwave.2026.08.3234","relation":{},"ISSN":["0717-6384"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0717-6384","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,23]]}}}