2.3 million people suffering with long Covid in the UK

2.3 million people in the UK were experiencing self-reported long COVID from September 3rd 2022, according to recent estimations. This is 3.5% of the population.

Of those, 46% reported experiencing long COVID symptoms at least one year after first having (suspected) COVID-19.

Self-reported long COVID was more common in:

• Those aged 35 to 69 years

• Females

• People living in more deprived areas

• Those working in social care

• Those aged 16 years and over who were not working and not looking for work

• Those with another activity-limiting health condition or disability 

People working in social care reported the highest prevalence of long Covid among employment groups

These figures have been published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and are based on self-reported long Covid from a representative sample of people in private households.

The findings suggest that there are sharp differences in the prevalence of long Covid among age groups and occupations.

An estimated 5.0% of 35-69 year-olds are likely to be suffering from long Covid, compared with 3.6% of 25-34 year-olds, 2.9% of people aged 70 and over and 2.7% of 17-24 year-olds.

People working in social care reported the highest prevalence of long Covid among employment groups (5.5%), followed by civil servants and local government staff (5.2%) and health care employees and teachers (5.0%).

Levels were lower among occupations such as financial services (3.4%), hospitality (3.5%) and information technology (3.8%).

There is no standard measure for long Covid, with the ONS using a definition based on symptoms that have persisted for more than four weeks after a first suspected coronavirus infection, where the symptoms could not be explained by something else.

The most common long COVID symptoms continued to be fatigue - This was a recurring symptom among 69% of those with self-reported long COVID.

This was followed by difficulty concentrating (45%), shortness of breath (42%) and muscle ache (40%).

Symptoms adversely affected the day-to-day activities of 1.6 million people - 72% of those with self-reported long COVID.

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