Perceived Chronic Stress prior to SARS-CoV-2 Infection Predicts Ongoing Symptomatic COVID-19: A Prospective Cohort Study , 2025, Fazekas et al.

[Chandelier]

https://karger.com/pps/article/doi/10.1159/000547858/934006/Perceived-Chronic-Stress-prior-to-SARS-CoV-2

Abstract​

Introduction: Understanding chronic stress as a potential risk factor for COVID-19 progression could inform public health measures and personalized preventive interventions. Therefore, we investigated the influence of chronic stress prior to SARS-CoV-2 infection on symptom persistence 1 month after COVID-19 onset.

Methods: The participants of this prospective cohort study named “StressLoC” were adults with COVID-19 who had tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection within the last 7 days. Pre-existing perceived chronic stress assessed by the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) was the primary predictor. The number of stressful life events and hair cortisol concentration served as additional measures of pre-existing chronic stress. The main outcome was examined using the Long COVID Symptom and Impact Tool. It was defined as the presence of any new and impactful COVID-19-related symptom at month 1 after inclusion. Accordingly, participants were assigned to either the ongoing symptomatic COVID-19 group (OSC-G) or control group.

Results: The study cohort comprised 288 participants (73.3% female), with a median age of 46 years (IQR 35–56). A total of 210 participants (72.9%) were categorized as OSC-G. Multivariate logistic regression showed that allocation to OSC-G was predicted by perceived chronic stress in the month prior to COVID-19 (OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03–1.14; p = 0.002) and the number of pre-existing symptoms (OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03–1.13; p = 0.001). The number of stressful life events and hair cortisol concentration did not predict OSC-G allocation.

Conclusions: Results suggest that higher levels of pre-existing perceived chronic stress increase the odds of developing ongoing symptomatic COVID-19.

 

[rvallee]

The number of stressful life events and hair cortisol concentration served as additional measures of pre-existing chronic stress

Neither measures of what they claim to, despite being objective, nor relevant. Could have gone with hair length for all that it matters. Just pure abandonment of any pretense of doing legitimate research. Any loose association is asserted to be perfectly predictive, while obvious causative relationships are systematically ignored despite being both more plausible and more likely. The questionnaire they used is so completely generic it makes astrology look scarily accurate by comparison, as a predictor of what time of year someone was born.

Like a zealous prosecutor combing through every single interaction someone has ever had in their lives, and desperately trying to tie having once made small talk to some long-lost uncle who may have committed a burglary in their youth as evidence of a lifelong incorrigible natural tendency to crime, deserving of being locked up for life.

Plus, zero consideration of what is even meant by stress. It's as if they have zero understanding that poor health is always captured as stress because the questionnaires ask overlapping questions, and it's far too easy to find out that prior poor health is a risk factor for LC, and an obvious one at that.

And, oh, looky here, they even match:

predicted by perceived chronic stress in the month prior to COVID-19 (OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03–1.14; p = 0.002) and the number of pre-existing symptoms (OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03–1.13; p = 0.001)

What a funny coinkydink.

But of course they can easily know that, they just choose to overlook it. This is far more harmful than what RFK Jr is doing, which at least is not taken seriously by professionals. But it's just as wrong in itself.

 

[Utsikt]

Those are really low ORs. I think this is a bust for the stress hypothesis.

 

[rvallee]

Those are really low ORs. I think this is a bust for the stress hypothesis.

And yet:

Conclusions: Results suggest that higher levels of pre-existing perceived chronic stress increase the odds of developing ongoing symptomatic COVID-19.

Because this is evidence-based medicine, where evidence does not matter and neither do outcomes, or reality, really.