Functional Limitations and Illness-Related Absenteeism among School-Aged Children with and without Long COVID, US, 2022–2023 - Ford et al, 2026

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Nicole D. Ford , Regina M. Simeone, Caroline Pratt, and Sharon Saydah
Author affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Abstract​

We examined functional limitations and illness-related chronic absenteeism (i.e., missing >18 days of school for health reasons) in a cross-sectional nationally representative sample of 11,057 US children 5–17 years of age who ever or never had long COVID (i.e., symptoms lasting >3 months after COVID-19 illness). Among 4,587 children with prior COVID-19, we estimated whether long COVID was associated with increased illness-related chronic absenteeism by using logistic regression. Our analysis showed that ≈1.4% of school-aged children had long COVID at some point. Among children with prior COVID-19, those who had long COVID at some point more frequently reported functional limitations, such as difficulty with memory, than those who did not have long COVID (18.3% vs. 8.6%). Having long COVID was associated with higher odds of illness-related chronic absenteeism. Children who had long COVID could experience functional limitations and absenteeism. School accommodations might be an option to improve functional limitations.

Long COVID is a chronic condition that includes a wide range of symptoms and conditions lasting >3 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection (1). Long COVID can affect multiple body systems, including cardiovascular, respiratory, and musculoskeletal. Commonly reported symptoms include fatigue, difficulty thinking or concentrating, and cough (2). In the 2023 US National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), 1.0% of children 6–11 years of age and 2.3% of children 12–17 years of age reported having long COVID at some point (3). Long COVID symptoms can limit a person’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities and affect functioning at school or work. In 2023, eight in 10 children with long COVID had activity limitation compared with before their COVID-19 illness (3).

Studies quantifying illness-related absenteeism in children by long COVID status are lacking, and few studies have examined functional limitations among children with long COVID. A qualitative study of UK children with long COVID reported that those children found attending school difficult, and even a gradual return required balancing the effects of missing school with preventing relapse (4). The larger societal effects of long COVID could be far-reaching if US school-aged children are unable to maintain school attendance, gain educational advancement, or engage in recreational activities vital to social and emotional development. We assessed whether functional limitations and illness-related absenteeism were more common among US school-aged children and adolescents who ever had long COVID compared with those who never had long COVID.

Functional Limitations and Illness-Related Absenteeism among School-Aged Children with and without Long COVID, United States, 2022–2023

Limitations among Children with Long COVID

wwwnc.cdc.gov

 

[Kalliope]

Research ties long COVID in kids to chronic school absenteeism, learning problems

Long COVID was also linked to a higher prevalence of anxiety and depression.

www.cidrap.umn.edu

quote:

A large Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studysuggests that US school-aged children diagnosed as having long COVID are at 2.5 times the risk of related chronic absenteeism compared with those without the condition.

The study, published last week in Emerging Infectious Diseases, also found double the prevalence of memory impairment, problems concentrating, and learning difficulties in this group.