P2863 - Risks of Digestive Diseases in Long COVID: Evidence From a Large-Scale Cohort Study

Yuying Ma, MD¹, Lijun Zhang, MD¹, Rui Wei, PhD¹, Weiyu Dai, PhD¹, Felix W. Leung, MD², Chongyang Duan, PhD³, Weihong Sha, PhD¹, Hao Chen, PhD^1
1Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China; ²University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA; ³Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China

Introduction: In the post-pandemic era, a wide range of COVID-19 sequelae is of growing health concern. However, the risks of digestive diseases in long COVID have not been comprehensively understood.

Methods: In this large-scale cohort study with up to 2.6 years follow-up, the COVID-19 group (n = 112,311) , the contemporary control group (n = 359,671) and the historical control group (n = 370,979) predated the COVID-19 outbreak were built using UK Biobank database. Hazard ratios (HRs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed utilizing the Cox regression models after inverse probability weighting.

Results: Compared with the contemporary control group, patients with previous COVID-19 infection had higher risks of digestive diseases, including functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) (HR 1.38 (95% CI 1.26 to 1.51)); peptic ulcer disease (HR 1.23 (1.00 to 1.52)); gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) (HR 1.41 (1.30 to 1.53)); gallbladder disease (HR 1.21 (1.06 to 1.38)); severe liver disease (HR 1.35 (1.03 to 1.76)); non-alcoholic liver disease (HR 1.27 (1.09 to 1.47)); and pancreatic disease (HR 1.36 (1.11 to 1.66)). The risks of GERD were stepwise increased with severity of the acute phase of COVID-19 infection. Even after one year follow-up, GERD (HR 1.64 (1.30 to 2.07)) and FGID (HR 1.35 (1.04 to 1.75)) continued to pose risks to COVID-19 patients. The results were consistent when the historical cohort was used as a control group.

Discussion: Our study provides important insights into the association between COVID-19 and the long-term risk of digestive system disorders. COVID-19 patients are at a higher risk of developing gastrointestinal disorders, with stepwise increased risk with the severity and persisting even after one year follow-up. This highlights the need to understand the varying risks of digestive outcomes in COVID-19 patients over time and develop appropriate follow-up strategies.


Disclosures:


Yuying Ma, MD¹, Lijun Zhang, MD¹, Rui Wei, PhD¹, Weiyu Dai, PhD¹, Felix W. Leung, MD², Chongyang Duan, PhD³, Weihong Sha, PhD¹, Hao Chen, PhD¹. P2863 - Risks of Digestive Diseases in Long COVID: Evidence From a Large-Scale Cohort Study, ACG 2023 Annual Scientific Meeting Abstracts. Vancouver, BC, Canada: American College of Gastroenterology.