<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>In circumstances of COVID-19 epidemiological uncertainty, the causes and consequences of the disease remain important issues. The aim of this study was to investigate obesity as a potential predisposition and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) as a possible consequence of COVID-19. The study was conducted in two parts: a theoretical part, in which a literature review was performed, and an empirical part, in which COVID-19 patient survey data were analysed. To identify the main findings regarding the relationship between obesity and COVID-19, the literature review was focused on the investigation of systematic reviews and meta-analyses by three databases — Med-line (via PubMed), Cochrane COVID-19 Study Register, and PROSPERO (International prospective register of systematic reviews). The patient survey was performed to investigate the relationship between obesity and severity of the disease, as well as the presence of CFS symptoms in COVID-19 patients in Latvia. The main findings of the literature review showed that obesity increases the risk of hospitalisation, disease severity, clinical complications, poor outcomes, and mortality. The results of the patient survey showed that overweight and obesity were more critical factors for men (males) suffering with COVID-19 than for women (females) in Latvia. The patient group with obesity caused almost half of all hospitalisations. The research data assumed that CFS patients were not a high-risk group for COVID-19, but COVID-19 caused CFS-like symptoms in patients and potentially increased the number of undiagnosed patients. In the context of further epidemiological uncertainty and the possibility of severe post-viral consequences, preventive measures are becoming increasingly important.</p>
</abstract>

In circumstances of COVID-19 epidemiological uncertainty, the causes and consequences of the disease remain important issues. The aim of this study was to investigate obesity as a potential predisposition and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) as a possible consequence of COVID-19. The study was conducted in two parts: a theoretical part, in which a literature review was performed, and an empirical part, in which COVID-19 patient survey data were analysed. To identify the main findings regarding the relationship between obesity and COVID-19, the literature review was focused on the investigation of systematic reviews and meta-analyses by three databases — Med-line (via PubMed), Cochrane COVID-19 Study Register, and PROSPERO (International prospective register of systematic reviews). The patient survey was performed to investigate the relationship between obesity and severity of the disease, as well as the presence of CFS symptoms in COVID-19 patients in Latvia. The main findings of the literature review showed that obesity increases the risk of hospitalisation, disease severity, clinical complications, poor outcomes, and mortality. The results of the patient survey showed that overweight and obesity were more critical factors for men (males) suffering with COVID-19 than for women (females) in Latvia. The patient group with obesity caused almost half of all hospitalisations. The research data assumed that CFS patients were not a high-risk group for COVID-19, but COVID-19 caused CFS-like symptoms in patients and potentially increased the number of undiagnosed patients. In the context of further epidemiological uncertainty and the possibility of severe post-viral consequences, preventive measures are becoming increasingly important.

Severity of COVID-19: Causes and Consequences — From Obesity to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Proceedings of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Section B. Natural, Exact, and Applied Sciences.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

In circumstances of COVID-19 epidemiological uncertainty, the causes and consequences of the disease remain important issues. The aim of this study was to...

Severity of COVID-19: Causes and Consequences — From Obesity to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Published Online: Dec 14, 2021

Page range: 411 - 416

Received: Mar 22, 2021

Accepted: Nov 02, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/prolas-2021-0061

Keywords
epidemiological uncertainty, risk factor, body mass index, disease, literature review

© 2021 Diāna Arāja et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Severity of COVID-19: Causes and Consequences — From Obesity to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Published Online: Dec 14, 2021

Page range: 411 - 416

Received: Mar 22, 2021

Accepted: Nov 02, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/prolas-2021-0061

Keywordsepidemiological uncertainty, risk factor, body mass index, disease, literature review

© 2021 Diāna Arāja et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
epidemiological uncertainty, risk factor, body mass index, disease, literature review