Disparities in post-COVID-19 prolonged fatigue: A comparative analysis between healthcare workers and the general population

<bold>Background:</bold> Healthcare workers have a deeper understanding of diseases owing to their immediate access to disease-related information. Consequently, healthcare workers are more adept at comprehending post-COVID-19 conditions compared to the general population. <bold>Objective:</bold> To evaluate disparities in psychological complications following COVID-19 infection between healthcare professionals and the general population. <bold>Methods:</bold> This study was a multicenter prospective, observational study conducted at 12 hospitals from January 2022 to December 2022. <bold>Results:</bold> The study included 477 healthcare workers and 178 individuals from the general population. Following propensity score matching, 158 participants were included in each respective group. In terms of psychological complications, a statistically significant disparity was observed in prolonged fatigue between healthcare professionals and the general population. At 6 months post-COVID-19 infection, 34.8% of the general population and 19% of healthcare workers experienced prolonged fatigue. In the mediator analysis, booster vaccination demonstrated no association with the difference in prolonged fatigue, whereas sleep disturbance at 6 months was identified as a contributing factor to the observed distinction in prolonged fatigue between the two groups. <bold>Conclusions:</bold> A substantial proportion of the general population experienced prolonged fatigue at 6 months post-COVID-19 infection compared to healthcare workers. Supplying relevant information to the general population may contribute to preventing prolonged fatigue through effective management and enhanced sleep quality.