Long Covid, each variant has its after-effects: the study

When the wave of Covid’s first seriously ill tsunami withdrew in 2020, many experienced the total absence of smell for long months. Then came the variants of Sars-CoV-2 and something changed. With the Alfa far fewer talked about this symptom so characteristic of the new coronavirus, and many more shared the experience of pain, mental fog, anxiety and depression. And so on, for each variant its Long Covid: to suggest it is an Italian study that also shows that women are more affected by post-infection syndromes, almost twice as many as men. While surprisingly, people with type 2 diabetes, among the hardest hit by the virus, seem less at risk of long sequelae. The new research will be presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (Eccmid), scheduled for April in Lisbon, Portugal. Michele Spinicci and colleagues from the University of Florence and the Careggi University Hospital suggest that the symptoms related to Long Covid could therefore be different in people who are infected with different variants. Estimates indicate that over half of Sars-CoV-2 survivors experience sequelae in the post-acute phase of Covid. The Long Covid condition can affect anyone: old and young, healthy and with pre-existing diseases. It has been observed in people admitted to hospital and in those with mild symptoms. Despite the growing literature on the disease, Long Covid remains poorly understood, the authors reflect. The work conducted is a retrospective observational study that involved 428 patients – 254 (59%) men and 174 (41%) women – treated in the post-Covid clinic of Careggi between June 2020 and June 2021, when the original virus and the Alpha variant were circulating in the population. The patients examined were discharged from the hospital 4-12 weeks before going to the outpatient service for the visit and completing a persistent symptoms questionnaire (median 53 days after discharge). In addition, data on the medical history, microbiological and clinical course of Covid, and patient demographics were obtained from electronic medical records. About three-quarters, 76% (i.e. 325 out of 428), reported at least one persistent symptom. The most common symptoms reported were shortness of breath (37%) and chronic fatigue (36%) followed by sleep problems (16%), vision problems (13%) and brain fog (13%). Analyzes suggest that people with more severe forms, who required the use of immunosuppressive drugs such as tocilizumab, were 6 times more likely to report symptoms of Long Covid. Those who received high-flow oxygen support were 40% more likely to have long-term problems. Women were nearly twice as likely to report Long Covid symptoms than men. Patients with type 2 diabetes appeared to have a lower risk. The authors point out that more studies are needed to better understand this unexpected finding.A more detailed evaluation was performed as part of the research, comparing the symptoms reported by infected patients between March and December 2020 (when the original virus was dominant) with those reported by infected patients between January and April 2021 (when Alpha was the dominant variant), and this is how a substantial change in the pattern of neurological and cognitive / emotional problems experienced in post Covid was discovered. Researchers found that when Alpha dominated, the prevalence of myalgia (muscle aches), insomnia, brain fog and anxiety / depression increased significantly, while anosmia (loss of smell) and dysgeusia (difficulty swallowing). as well as hearing problems were less common. “Many of the symptoms reported in this study were measured, but this is the first time they have been linked to different variants,” Spinicci notes. The authors acknowledge that the study was observational and demonstrates no cause and effect, but turns the spotlight on a major problem. “The long duration and wide range of symptoms – concludes Spinicci – remind us that the problem is not disappearing and that we need to do more to support and protect these patients in the long term. Future research should focus on the potential impacts of worrying variants. and on the status of vaccination on symptoms in progress “.