Science AI Journal
Medicine · Research topic

Open research questions in COVID-19 and healthcare impacts

149 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 1,743 COVID-19 and healthcare impacts papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Although prior studies suggest an association between MI and worse long-term outcomes, the evidence remains inconsistent.

    Two-year follow-up of patients with myocardial injury during acute COVID-19: insights from the CARDIO COVID 20–21 registry · 2025 · DOI

  • Introduction COVID-19 can cause Myocardial Injury (MI) during acute illness, which has been strongly associated with worse outcomes during hospitalization, however, more research is required on its effects on long-term outcomes, especially in underexplored regions in the literature such as Latin America.

    Two-year follow-up of patients with myocardial injury during acute COVID-19: insights from the CARDIO COVID 20–21 registry · 2025 · DOI

  • Previous initiatives to promote cardiovascular health were effective, but further research on cardiovascular healthcare for the elderly and racial disparities should be attached to priority considering the presence of sociodemographic differences in CVD death.

    Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cardiovascular mortality and contrast analysis within subgroups · 2024 · DOI

  • While pre-existing comorbidities have been linked to most cases, the exact distribution of fatalities within the country remains unclear.

    Geospatial analysis of cardiovascular mortality before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru: analysis of the national death registry to support emergency management in Peru · 2024 · DOI

  • However, few studies have investigated the impact of the pandemic's later stages (2022-2023) on healthcare utilization rates, particularly in the Japanese context.

    Changes in Healthcare Utilization in Japan in the Aftermath of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Time Series Analysis of Japanese National Data Through November 2023 · 2024 · DOI

  • While there are limited studies assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people living with HIV (PLHIV) in Latin America, there are none, to our knowledge, in Venezuela.

    The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people living with HIV: a cross-sectional study in Caracas, Venezuela · 2024 · DOI

  • Importance: COVID-19 in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoma (ALL/LLy) has not been described in detail and may affect chemotherapy administration and long-term outcomes.

    COVID-19 in Pediatric Patients With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia or Lymphoma · 2024 · DOI

  • Future research should focus on the mechanisms of these disparities and on developing interventions to ensure equitable and consistent SPC access.

    Socioeconomic Status, Palliative Care, and Death at Home Among Patients With Cancer Before and During COVID-19 · 2024 · DOI

  • Future research should investigate long-term survival changes among all cancer types as additional follow-up data are accrued.

    Survival Among Patients With High-Risk Gastrointestinal Cancers During the COVID-19 Pandemic · 2024 · DOI

  • evaluate the long-term impact of the pandemic on lung cancer diagnosis, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes, - conduct studies with longer follow-up and more recent data

    The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Diagnosis, Treatment, and Survival of Lung Cancer Patients in Thailand from 2019–2021 · 2026 · DOI

  • The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on lung cancer diagnosis and treatment is not well understood. There is a need to assess the pandemic's effects on lung cancer services. The study aims to address this gap by evaluating the pandemic's impact on lung cancer diagnosis and treatment.

    The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Diagnosis, Treatment, and Survival of Lung Cancer Patients in Thailand from 2019–2021 · 2026 · DOI

  • The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on asthma hospitalizations and mortality in Brazil is not well understood. There is a need to analyze the epidemiological profile of asthma hospitalizations and deaths in Brazil.

    IMPACTO DA PANDEMIA DE COVID-19 NAS INTERNAÇÕES E MORTALIDADE POR ASMA NO BRASIL: ANÁLISE REGIONAL E SAZONAL · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of information on the costs associated with COVID-19 hospitalizations. The need for estimates of hospitalization costs to inform healthcare policy and resource allocation decisions.

    Hospitalization costs of patients with severe acute respiratory infections due to COVID-19 in a public teaching hospital: a micro-costing approach · 2026 · DOI

  • The complexity of mortality causes and the need for consideration of multiple causes of death. The limitations of the traditional UCOD approach. The need for accurate and reliable mortality surveillance data.

    Multiple cause of death during the COVID-19 pandemic: a population study In Colombia and Brazil · 2026 · DOI

  • The traditional UCOD approach may hinder surveillance efforts by attributing the cause of death to a single disease or event. There is a need for evaluation of the use of MCOD methods for mortality surveillance.

    Multiple cause of death during the COVID-19 pandemic: a population study In Colombia and Brazil · 2026 · DOI

  • The study is limited by its retrospective design. The study is limited by the small number of partially vaccinated patients. Data sharing is not possible due to regulatory restrictions.

    Vaccination is associated with reduced mortality rates after surgery for hip fractures in the setting of recent COVID-19 infection: an observational study from the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Database · 2026 · DOI

  • Limited data exist on mortality and venous thromboembolism risk in hip-fracture patients with recent COVID-19 infection. The association between vaccination status and mortality risk in this patient population is not well understood.

    Vaccination is associated with reduced mortality rates after surgery for hip fractures in the setting of recent COVID-19 infection: an observational study from the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Database · 2026 · DOI

  • Disruptions in healthcare delivery due to the pandemic. High risk of bias due to confounding. Limited understanding of the effects of the pandemic on healthcare delivery.

    Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on diagnosis, and healthcare utilization, among patients with cancer (lung, breast, and pancreas) and cardiovascular diseases (HF, AF, hypertensive, and chronic ischemic heart disease) in Germany: two systematic reviews · 2026 · DOI

  • The study is limited to Germany. The study only includes studies published between 2020 and 2023. The study has a high risk of bias due to confounding.

    Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on diagnosis, and healthcare utilization, among patients with cancer (lung, breast, and pancreas) and cardiovascular diseases (HF, AF, hypertensive, and chronic ischemic heart disease) in Germany: two systematic reviews · 2026 · DOI

  • The study faces challenges in quantifying the pandemic's impact on life expectancy due to the complexity of the data and the need to control for various factors. The analysis must account for regional differences and structural disparities in healthcare systems and socioeconomic conditions. The study requires the use of appropriate statistical models to estimate the pandemic's effect and identify the primary mediator of its impact.

    Excess Mortality as the Primary Mediator of COVID-19’s Impact on Life Expectancy in Europe: A Multilevel Longitudinal Analysis of Regional Disparities · 2026 · DOI

  • The pandemic's differential impact across European regions remains inadequately quantified. The mediating mechanisms of the pandemic's impact on life expectancy are not well understood.

    Excess Mortality as the Primary Mediator of COVID-19’s Impact on Life Expectancy in Europe: A Multilevel Longitudinal Analysis of Regional Disparities · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a need to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on life expectancy in different regions of Brazil. There is a lack of studies on the differences in mortality rates and life expectancy between regions in Brazil.

    COVID-19 E DIFERENCIAIS NA EXPECTATIVA DE VIDA DA POPULAÇÃO IDOSA POR REGIÕES DO BRASIL · 2026 · DOI

  • There is a lack of studies on the impact of the pandemic on interprofessional relationships. The current study addresses this gap by assessing the specific impact on relationships between pharmacists and physicians.

    The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on interprofessional relationships between pharmacists and physicians · 2026 · DOI

  • Cancer patients are at higher risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes due to compromised immune systems. There is a need to balance the management of cancer and COVID-19 in these patients.

    Long-Term Survival of Cancer Patients Following COVID-19 Infection: Prognostic Value of Inflammatory Indices and Vaccination Status · 2026 · DOI

  • The survival outcomes of cancer patients exposed to COVID-19 remain an area with limited data. There is a need to understand the prognostic value of inflammatory indices and vaccination status in cancer patients with COVID-19.

    Long-Term Survival of Cancer Patients Following COVID-19 Infection: Prognostic Value of Inflammatory Indices and Vaccination Status · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in COVID-19 and healthcare impacts

Most recent work

Find a gap in your own COVID-19 and healthcare impacts sub-topic

This page shows what the COVID-19 and healthcare impacts literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, run the guided finder — it searches the gap library on demand and checks candidates against 250M+ OpenAlex works.

Open the Research Gap Finder →

Related topics in Medicine

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
2,044 open questions
Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
1,964 open questions
Smoking Behavior and Cessation
990 open questions
Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
974 open questions
Innovations in Medical Education
960 open questions
Physical Activity and Health
923 open questions
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
839 open questions
Schizophrenia research and treatment
709 open questions
149 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 1,743 COVID-19 and healthcare impacts papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

Tools for your next paper

Gaps & Literature SearchFind open questions in any field — 120,000+ open gaps mined from our own library.Pre-CheckIs your paper ready? A Tier 1–5 acceptance probability in seconds.Journal FinderA ranked shortlist of target journals from a 17,500-venue index.Duplicate Publication CheckerCheck prior-publication & salami-slicing risk across 8 sources.Citation GeneratorFreeA DOI or title → APA, MLA, Vancouver, Chicago, BibTeX, RIS. No signup.Graphical Abstract MakerFreeTurn your findings into a colorblind-safe graphical abstract.

Compare the category — Honest roundups of the AI research tools, ours listed alongside the alternatives.

Command palette

Jump anywhere, run any action.