Approximately 20% of patients meeting the 2016 fibromyalgia criteria report post-exertional malaise, which may be key to understanding long COVID and fatigue in patients with rheumatic diseases. Chronic fatigue is the dominant symptom in patients with long COVID, and myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome is important in patients with rheumatic and autoimmune diseases. A study examined the prevalence of post-exertional malaise among patients with different rheumatic diseases, finding that any prior COVID-19 infection was associated with positivity for post-exertional malaise. Further research is needed to understand the associations between post-exertional malaise, disease activity, and COVID-19.
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Post-exertional malaise assessment ‘becoming more important’ for long COVID in rheum care
