A sequela (, ; usually used in the plural, sequelae ) is a
pathological condition resulting from a
disease
A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or part of an organism, and that is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical conditions that a ...
,
injury
An injury is any physiological damage to living tissue caused by immediate physical stress. An injury can occur intentionally or unintentionally and may be caused by blunt trauma, penetrating trauma, burning, toxic exposure, asphyxiation, o ...
,
therapy
A therapy or medical treatment (often abbreviated tx, Tx, or Tx) is the attempted remediation of a health problem, usually following a medical diagnosis.
As a rule, each therapy has indications and contraindications. There are many differe ...
, or other
trauma
Trauma most often refers to:
*Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source
*Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event
*Traumatic inju ...
. Derived from the Latin word, meaning “sequel”, it is used in the medical field to mean a complication or condition following a prior illness or disease.
A typical sequela is a
chronic complication of an
acute
Acute may refer to:
Science and technology
* Acute angle
** Acute triangle
** Acute, a leaf shape in the glossary of leaf morphology
* Acute (medicine), a disease that it is of short duration and of recent onset.
** Acute toxicity, the adverse ef ...
condition—in other words, a long-term effect of a temporary disease or injury—which follows immediately from the condition. Sequelae differ from
late effects, which can appear long after—even several decades after—the original condition has resolved.
In general, non-medical usage, the terms ''sequela'' and ''sequelae'' mean consequence and consequences.
Examples and uses
Chronic kidney disease, for example, is sometimes a sequela of
diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...
; "chronic constipation" or more accurately "obstipation" (that is, inability to pass stool or gas) is a sequela to an intestinal obstruction; and neck pain is a common sequela of
whiplash or other trauma to the
cervical vertebrae
In tetrapods, cervical vertebrae (singular: vertebra) are the vertebrae of the neck, immediately below the skull. Truncal vertebrae (divided into thoracic and lumbar vertebrae in mammals) lie caudal (toward the tail) of cervical vertebrae. In ...
.
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats o ...
may be a psychological sequela of
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
. Sequelae of
traumatic brain injury include
headache,
dizziness
Dizziness is an imprecise term that can refer to a sense of disorientation in space, vertigo, or lightheadedness. It can also refer to disequilibrium or a non-specific feeling, such as giddiness or foolishness.
Dizziness is a common medical c ...
,
anxiety
Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...
,
apathy
Apathy is a lack of feeling, emotion, interest, or concern about something. It is a state of indifference, or the suppression of emotions such as concern, excitement, motivation, or passion. An apathetic individual has an absence of inter ...
,
depression, aggression, cognitive impairments, personality changes,
mania, and
psychosis
Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavi ...
.
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
is also known to cause post-acute sequelae, known as
long COVID
Long COVID or long-haul COVID (also known as post-COVID-19 syndrome, post-COVID-19 condition, post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC), or chronic COVID syndrome (CCS)) is a condition characterized by long-term health problems persisting or app ...
, post-COVID syndrome, or ''post-acute sequelae of COVID-19'' (PASC).
This refers to the continuation of COVID-19 symptoms or the development of new ones, four or more weeks after the initial infection; these symptoms may persist for weeks and months. Post-COVID syndrome can occur in individuals who were asymptomatic for COVID, as well as those ranging from mild illness to severe hospitalization. These most commonly reported sequelae include fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain, loss of smell, and
brain fog
Clouding of consciousness (also known as brain fog or mental fog) occurs when a person is slightly less wakeful or aware than normal. They are not as aware of time or their surroundings and find it difficult to pay attention. People describe this ...
; symptoms drastically range, from mild illness to severe impairment.
Some conditions may be
diagnosed retrospectively from their sequelae. An example is
pleurisy
Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity ( pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant dull ache. Other sy ...
.
Other examples of sequelae include those following neurological injury; including
aphasia
Aphasia is an inability to comprehend or formulate language because of damage to specific brain regions. The major causes are stroke and head trauma; prevalence is hard to determine but aphasia due to stroke is estimated to be 0.1–0.4% in ...
,
ataxia
Ataxia is a neurological sign consisting of lack of voluntary coordination of muscle movements that can include gait abnormality, speech changes, and abnormalities in eye movements. Ataxia is a clinical manifestation indicating dysfunction of ...
, hemi- and
quadriplegia, and any number of other changes that may be caused by neurological trauma. Note that these pathologies can be related to both physical and chemical traumas, as both can cause lingering
neuron
A neuron, neurone, or nerve cell is an electrically excitable cell that communicates with other cells via specialized connections called synapses. The neuron is the main component of nervous tissue in all animals except sponges and placozoa ...
al damage.
The phrase ''status post'', abbreviated in writing as ''s/p'', is used to discuss sequelae with reference to their cause. Clinicians typically use the phrase to refer to acute traumatic conditions. For example: "the patient had neck pain ''status post'' a
motor vehicle accident".
Rheumatic fever
Rheumatic fever (RF) is an inflammatory disease that can involve the heart, joints, skin, and brain. The disease typically develops two to four weeks after a streptococcal throat infection. Signs and symptoms include fever, multiple painful ...
is a non-suppurative sequela of a primary infection of group A ''
Streptococcus
''Streptococcus'' is a genus of gram-positive ' (plural ) or spherical bacteria that belongs to the family Streptococcaceae, within the order Lactobacillales (lactic acid bacteria), in the phylum Bacillota. Cell division in streptococci occurs ...
'' bacteria.
Glomerulonephritis
Glomerulonephritis (GN) is a term used to refer to several kidney diseases (usually affecting both kidneys). Many of the diseases are characterised by inflammation either of the glomeruli or of the small blood vessels in the kidneys, hence the ...
can also be a non-suppurative sequela of ''
Streptococcus pyogenes
''Streptococcus pyogenes'' is a species of Gram-positive, aerotolerant bacteria in the genus '' Streptococcus''. These bacteria are extracellular, and made up of non-motile and non-sporing cocci (round cells) that tend to link in chains. They ...
''.
Certain pharmaceutical drugs are known to uncommonly result in sequelae that may last months or years after the last dosage; notable examples of these post-discontinuation disorders include
post-SSRI sexual dysfunction,
post-finasteride syndrome, and
post-accutane syndrome. The aforementioned three examples are all characterized by persistent
sexual dysfunction
Sexual dysfunction is difficulty experienced by an individual or partners during any stage of normal sexual activity, including physical pleasure, desire, preference, arousal, or orgasm. The World Health Organization defines sexual dysfunction a ...
that occurs following cessation of the drug, among other long-lasting symptoms.
References
Further reading
*
External links
{{wiktionary
Traumatic causes of Tempormandibular Joints Disorder (dysfunction)
Medical terminology