COVID-19 vaccination lowers long COVID risk in adolescents

Nov. 6, 2025--Adolescents who were vaccinated against COVID-19 were less likely to develop long COVID after their first SARS-CoV-2 infection than unvaccinated peers, finds a new study.

The study, led by the NIH-funded RECOVER Initiative, is the first to examine the potential benefits of COVID vaccination in adolescents beyond lowering the severity of initial COVID symptoms. 

“These findings provide evidence that COVID vaccination has an important secondary effect in helping to mitigate the risk of long COVID in adolescents,” says Melissa Stockwell, a pediatrician at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and clinical senior author of the study.

The RECOVER research team estimates that approximately 5.8 million youths have experienced long COVID which can include prolonged symptoms such as daytime fatigue, joint and muscle aches, and memory problems.

Previous studies have shown that vaccination against COVID-19 can reduce the risk of long COVID in adults. But evidence of a similar benefit among youths has been limited. 

The new study included over 1,200 adolescents from across the United States; 724 were vaccinated against COVID in the six months prior to their first infection and 507 were not vaccinated. 

The researchers found that the risk of developing long COVID was over 20% among unvaccinated youths and about 13% among those who were vaccinated—representing a 36% reduction in risk after vaccination. 

“Every day, our study sees young people who are unable to fully participate in the activities they enjoy while they deal with long COVID symptoms,” says Stockwell. “While our study did not look at the effects of COVID vaccination in adolescents with subsequent infections, our findings strongly suggest that getting vaccinated against COVID-19 could allow many more adolescents to live their lives normally after COVID infection.” 

Additional information

The study, titled “Preventive Effect of Vaccination on Long COVID in Adolescents with SARS-CoV-2 Infection,” by Tanayott Thaweethai, Rachel S. Gross, et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127907, was published online Nov. 1 in Vaccine, Vol. 68 (Dec. 5, 2025).

All authors: Tanayott Thaweethai (Harvard University), Rachel S. Gross (NYU Langone), Deepti B. Pant (Harvard), Kyung E. Rhee (University of California  San Diego), Terry L. Jernigan (UCSD), Lawrence C. Kleinman (Rutgers University), Jessica N. Snowden (University of Tennessee), Amy  Salisbury (Virginia Commonwealth University), Patricia A. Kinser (Virginia Commonwealth), Joshua D. Milner (Columbia University), Kelan Tantisira (UCSD), David Warburton (University of Southern California), Sindhu Mohandas (USC), John C. Wood (USC), Megan L. Fitzgerald (Patient-Led Research Collaborative, Calabasas, CA),  Megan Carmilani (Long COVID Families, Charlotte, NC), Aparna Krishnamoorthy (Harvard), Harrison T. Reeder (Harvard), Andrea S. Foulkes (Harvard), and Melissa S. Stockwell (Columbia University).

The study was funded by NIH agreements OT2HL161841, OT2HL161847, and OT2HL156812. Additional support for the study is reported in the article.

Melissa Stockwell, MD, MPH, is chief of the Division of Child and Adolescent Health and professor of pediatrics at Columbia University’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and professor of population and family health at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health. Dr. Stockwell is chair of the pediatric coordinating committee for RECOVER.

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Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC) is a clinical, research, and educational campus located in New York City. Founded in 1928, CUIMC was one of the first academic medical centers established in the United States of America. CUIMC is home to four professional colleges and schools that provide global leadership in scientific research, health and medical education, and patient care including the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, the Mailman School of Public Health, the College of Dental Medicine, the School of Nursing. For more information, please visit cuimc.columbia.edu. 

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