Millions of people around the world are thought to suffer from long COVID, yet little is known about the condition.
It is estimated that between 10 to 20 percent of people who contract coronaviruses will have long COVID symptoms such as fatigue, breathlessness, and a lack of mental clarity months after recovering.
According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, more than 140 million people worldwide had at least one of those symptoms in the next two years.
In Europe alone, 17 million people had a long COVID symptom at least three months after they got sick.
Hans Kluge, WHO Europe director, called for the world to act quickly to learn more about the problem.
The vast array of symptoms has complicated things for researchers.
More than 200 different symptoms have been attributed to long COVID.
There are no symptoms that are specific to long COVID, but there are certain characteristics that change over time.
He told Agence France-Presse that fatigue remains in the background and that the symptoms become less frequent over time.
According to the IH ME, people with more severe initial cases are more likely to get long COVID.
Several leads have been pursued into the cause of the condition.
In a study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases in September, it was found that spike protein was still present in patients a full year after they were bitten.
The researchers said that this suggests that some people may have viral reservoirs that may cause inflammation and long-term symptoms.
If they are correct, a test could be developed to identify the spike, which could lead to a clear way to diagnose the condition.
Their findings have not been confirmed by other research.
It is believed that tissue damage from severe COVID cases causes lasting disruption to the immune system.
There is a suggestion that the initial infections cause tiny blood clot, which could be related to long COVID symptoms.
The data is not very solid for each of the hypotheses.
He said that it was most likely that we wouldn't find a cause to explain long COVID.
It is possible that the causes are not exclusive. They could succeed in the same way or be different in different ways.
It is not possible to treat the condition.
The Hotel-Dieu hospital in Paris has been offering long COVID patients a half day treatment course for the last year.
They meet a doctor specializing in sports rehabilitation and an infectious disease specialist.
Most of the symptoms can be attributed to functional syndromes. There are no known causes for chronic fatigue and Fibromyalgia.
Long COVID can be treated with cognitive behavioral therapy along with supervised physical activity.
Three months later, the patients come back. Most of them are better. She told Agence France-Presse that more than half of them are cured.
About 15% did not improve.
Agence France- Presse.
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