The Protective Effect of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccination on Postacute Sequelae of COVID-19: A Multicenter Study From a Large National Health Research Network

• Published in: Open forum infectious diseases Vol. 9; no. 7; p. ofac228
• Main Authors: Zisis, Sokratis N, Durieux, Jared C, Mouchati, Christian, Perez, Jamie A, McComsey, Grace A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Oxford University Press 01-07-2022
• Subjects: Major; long COVID; COVID-19 vaccination; PASC; postacute sequelae of COVID–19
• ISSN: 2328-8957; 2328-8957
• DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofac228

Abstract
Background
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines have been proven to decrease the severity of acute-phase infection; however, little is known about their effect on postacute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC).
Methods
Patients with confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis and minimum age of 18 years with 3-month follow-up postdiagnosis between 21 September 2020 and 14 December 2021 were identified from the TriNetX Research Network platform. The primary outcomes consisted of new-onset or persistent symptoms, new-onset diagnoses, and death and were compared between vaccine and no-vaccine groups.
Results
At baseline, 1 578 719 patients with confirmed COVID-19 were identified and 1.6% (n = 25 225) completed vaccination. After matching, there were no differences (P > .05) in demographics or preexisting comorbidities. At 28 days following COVID-19 diagnosis, the incidence of hypertension was 13.52 per 1000, diabetes was 5.98 per 1000, thyroid disease was 3.80 per 1000, heart disease was 15.41 per 1000, and mental disorders was 14.77 per 1000 in the vaccine cohort. At 90 days following COVID-19 diagnosis, the relative risk of hypertension was 0.33 (95% confidence interval [CI], .26–.42), diabetes was 0.28 (95% CI, .20–.38), heart disease was 0.35 (95% CI, .29–.44), and death was 0.21 (95% CI, .16–.27). Differences in both 28- and 90-day risk between the vaccine and no-vaccine cohorts were observed for each outcome, and there was enough evidence (P < .05) to suggest that these differences were attributed to the vaccine.
Conclusions
Our data suggest that COVID-19 vaccine is protective against PASC symptoms, new onset of health conditions, and mortality.
This study suggests that the COVID-19 vaccine is protective against mortality and each incident postacute sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (PASC) outcome. In addition, vaccination is associated with a significantly lower likelihood of experiencing new or persistent PASC symptoms.