COVID-19 Diagnosis, Severity, and Long COVID Among U.S. Adolescents, National Health Interview Survey, 2022.

Abstract

Purpose: Understanding disparities in COVID-19 outcomes, overall and stratified by vaccination status, is important for developing targeted strategies to increase vaccination coverage and protect adolescents from COVID-19.

Design: The 2022 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is a cross-sectional nationally representative household survey of U.S. adults.

Setting: A probability sample of households in the U.S.

Sample: One child aged 12-17 years is randomly selected from each family in the household. A knowledgeable adult (eg, parent or guardian), responds on behalf of the child through an in-person interview (response rate = 49.9%).

Measures: Input measures-sociodemographic characteristics and COVID-19 vaccination status; output measures-ever had COVID-19, moderate/severe COVID-19, long COVID.

Analysis: Prevalence of COVID-19 outcomes was assessed for adolescents aged 12-17 years. Factors associated with each COVID-19 outcome were assessed with multivariable logistic regression analyses.

Results: Among 2758 adolescents aged 12-17 years in 2022, 60.5% had received ≥1 dose of COVID-19 vaccine, 30.2% had ever been diagnosed by a doctor that they had COVID-19, 29.5% had moderate/severe COVID-19, and 6.2% had long COVID. Adolescents who were vaccinated with ≥1 dose were less likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19 (aOR = .79) and less likely to have long COVID (aOR = .30).

Conclusion: Targeted messaging to highlight the importance of early treatment, the harms of long COVID-19, and the benefits of vaccination in protecting against long-term effects may be necessary to ensure that all adolescents and their families are adequately protected.