Long COVID shown to linger
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Two-thirds of people with Long COVID endure debilitating symptoms beyond two years.
A recent study tracked nearly 1,000 Long COVID patients, revealing persistent physical and cognitive impairments with no major symptom improvements over time.
The research followed 982 Long COVID patients and 576 individuals without the condition.
Among the Long COVID group, 68 per cent reported symptoms lasting more than a year, including fatigue, memory and attention problems, breathlessness, mental health issues, and sleep disturbances.
Testing revealed measurable declines in health.
Long COVID sufferers showed reduced handgrip strength, lower maximal oxygen consumption, and impaired ventilatory efficiency.
Cognitive tests indicated significant deficits in memory, attention, and processing speed compared to healthy controls.
Patients with severe initial COVID-19 infections, obesity, or lower educational attainment were more likely to experience prolonged symptoms.
A third reported exercise intolerance, with post-exertional malaise persisting for hours, leading to worse overall outcomes.
The study called for clinical evaluations to include cognitive and physical health tests for Long COVID patients.
“Grave symptoms with mental and physical exercise dysfunction, but no laboratory markers in Long COVID/post-COVID syndrome,” researchers noted, emphasising the complexity of the condition.
While the study found no evidence of viral persistence or organ dysfunction, it urged further research into why some patients recover while others do not.
