Human Health before, during, and after COVID-19

Dear Colleagues,

It has been more than three years since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic. Since that point, we have experienced profound changes in the ways that we work, socialise, and learn. The severity of this transformation has allowed us to examine daily practices, social norms, institutions, and the positive and negative aspects of our former lifestyles. The pandemic compelled us to appreciate the precious details of our lives that we have taken for granted: workplaces, human touch, parties, travel, and access to and the utilisation of healthcare facilities. We are thus able to reflect on the ways we live now in order to modify our cultures and find different ways to improve the quality of life for future generations. Many trends that had already started before COVID-19 have been accelerated by the impact of the pandemic. Examples include the digital economy, with the rise of telemedicine in the healthcare delivery services.

One of the hardest things to deal with in this period was maintaining physical distance. Physical interactions are an essential part of human social experience, and they are particularly important for the development of young people. Social distancing, school closures, and physical isolation from friends have been especially challenging for adolescents. Some have subsequently experienced feelings of loneliness, hopelessness, and sadness. Remote learning and homeworking under lockdown have also impacted the wellbeing of university students and young workers. Over the course of the pandemic, people of all ages reported symptoms consistent with anxiety and depression, regardless of severity of any viral infection. Additionally, increasing evidence of post-COVID long-term effects has been reported in the literature. Long COVID describes a range of symptoms, including fatigue, dyspnea, brain fog, and mental health disorders.

COVID is becoming endemic, which means that we will live with it as we do with the flu, i.e., without consequences as severe as those seen in the first three years. However, while some countries have reported a decline in COVID-19 cases and deaths, largely due to high vaccination coverage, there is still a relevant public health concern about refugees and unvaccinated people in many developing countries. The behaviour we all exhibit and the epidemiology of the virus itself are extremely important. New SARS-CoV-2 variants show increasing levels of concern and are likely to impact the epidemiological situation worldwide.

This Special Issue aims to provide a collection of high-quality data and new insights into COVID-19. We invite healthcare professionals and researchers involved in COVID-19 to submit original research articles or reviews to Life. Papers will be peer-reviewed by experts in the field.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Healthcare.

Dr. Alessia Verduri
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• COVID-19
• telemedicine
• pandemic-related anxiety
• pandemic-related depression
• long COVID
• unvaccinated people
• new SARS-CoV-2 variants