Harrison, Mia; Rhodes, Tim and Lancaster, Kari. 2024. Constitution of Long COVID illness, patienthood and recovery: a critical synthesis of qualitative studies. BMJ Open, 14, e083340. ISSN 2044-6055 [Article]

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Abstract or Description

Objectives To investigate the lived experiences of Long COVID.

Design Critical interpretive synthesis of qualitative research.

Data sources PubMed and Web of Science databases were searched on 14 September 2023.

Eligibility criteria Original peer-reviewed qualitative studies describing the experiences of Long COVID were eligible for inclusion.

Data extraction and synthesis We used established qualitative synthesis methods to search, screen and manually code the included studies. Critical interpretation methods were used to analyse the data and develop synthetic constructs.

Results 68 articles were identified in the first phase of sampling, with 16 studies and 879 participants included in the final synthesis. The analysis of these studies was organised into three thematic constructions of Long COVID: (1) the illness, (2) the patient and (3) recovery. Long COVID was diversely characterised across study approaches, designs and findings but was underpinned by shared diagnostic logics, which shaped the identification and measurement of symptoms. The boundaries between different constitutions of Long COVID in qualitative accounts of illness experience were often imprecise. Slippages between different definitions of Long COVID had implications for patient experiences in relation to diagnosis, help-seeking and care, and expectations of recovery.

Conclusions Long COVID is a site of multiple and diverse qualitative interpretation. Accounts of lived experience emphasise the constitutions of illness, patienthood and recovery as situated and emergent. The ongoing context-based negotiation of Long COVID is a defining qualitative feature of the condition. Approaches to researching, diagnosing and developing health interventions must be as adaptive as the varieties of Long COVID lived experience.

Item Type:	Article
Identification Number (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2023-083340
Additional Information:	Funding This research was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (grant NIHR135315). The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care. We are grateful for additional support from the UNSW SHARP (TR) and Scientia Fellowship (KL) schemes. KL is supported by an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellowship (DE230100642).
Data Access Statement:	All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as supplementary information. Not applicable
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Sociology
Dates:	Date Event 18 March 2024 Accepted 28 March 2024 Published
Item ID:	36361
Date Deposited:	20 May 2024 10:54
Last Modified:	20 May 2024 10:54
Peer Reviewed:	Yes, this version has been peer-reviewed.
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/36361

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