Table 1. Description of the study population, n = 481 989, 2nd quarter 2021.
| Characteristics *1 | Cases (n = 160 663) | Controls (n = 321 326) |
| Male, n (%) | 66 331 (41.3) | 142 551 (44.4) |
| 0–17 years old, n (%) | 3 693 (2.3) | 44 388 (13.8) |
| 18–64 years old, n (%) | 129 342 (80.5) | 189 060 (58.8) |
| 65+ years old, n (%) | 27 628 (17.2) | 87 878 (27.3) |
| Service use in 2020, n (%) | 155 947 (97.1) | 304 162 (94.7) |
| Age, years *2 | 51 (38/61) | 51 (29/66) |
| Number of post-COVID-19 symptoms*2, *3 | 1 (0/1) | 0 (0/1) |
| Number of treatment cases, Q2 2021*2, *4 | 4 (2/6) | 2 (1/3) |
| Number of treatment cases with post-COVID-19, Q2 2021 *2, *4 | 1 (1/1) | – |
| Most common post-COVID-19 symptoms, n (%) | ||
| Sore throat/hoarseness | 29 910 (18.6) | 28 206 (8.8) |
| Fatigue/exhaustion | 29 358 (18.3) | 11 260 (3.5) |
| Shortness of breath | 27 788 (17.3) | 7 293 (2.3) |
| Headache | 13 170 (8.2) | 19 419 (6.0) |
| Cough | 13 151 (8.2) | 7 419 (2.3) |
| Sleep disorders | 11 814 (7.4) | 18 653 (5.8) |
| Disorders of smell/taste | 5 095 (3.2) | 547 (0.2) |
*1 All p-values (t-test for continuous variables and ?2 test for categorical variables) are 0.0001
*2 Values are median (25th/75th percentile)
*3 Out of 18 symptoms: abdominal pain, chest pain, sore throat / hoarseness, shortness of breath, fatigue / exhaustion, delirium, diarrhea, loss of appetite, cough, muscle pain, loss of smell / taste, headache, hair loss, nausea, sleep disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, pain disorder, fever (based on [3])
*4 Defined according to § 21 Abs. 1 Bundesmantelvertrag-Ärzte (BMV-Ä): Treatment of the same insured person by the same medical practice in a calendar quarter at the expense of the same health insurance provider.