It’s time to team up and work on Long COVID, WHO experts say

The World Health Organization’s post-COVID leader told AFP that it’s time to begin solving the mystery of Long COVID, the side of the pandemic killing millions.

Little is known about why some people struggle to recover after the acute phase of COVID-19 and suffer from ongoing symptoms such as malaise, brain fog, heart and neuropathy.

At this stage of the pandemic, the world is sticking to vaccine deployments and new, more contagious variants. Coronavirus..

However, Long COVID deserves similar urgent attention, said Janet Diaz, clinical care leader of WHO’s emergency program, prior to promoting a globally unified approach to the problem.

“We still don’t fully understand what LongCOVID is,” Diaz told AFP in an interview outside WHO’s headquarters in Geneva.

“There’s a lot to learn, but I’m convinced that the scientific community is really there.”

Needless to say, LongCOVID doesn’t have a proper name yet.

WHO now calls this post-COVID condition, but other terms include post-acute COVID syndrome and COVID long-distance infections.

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WHO will hold its first global seminar on Long COVID on February 9th. In this seminar, scientists, professionals and clinicians will come together to define the condition, give it a formal name and harmonize research methods.

Diaz, a 48-year-old pulmonologist and intensive care physician in the United States, said, “This is a condition that needs to be explained further, the numbers affected, and the causes. You can improve management and treatment. ” ..

She suggests that 1 in 10 cases may have prolonged symptoms one month after infection, but the UK and other studies do not yet know how long those conditions will last. Stated.

Elderly people and people with underlying illness are at greatest risk of serious illness due to COVID-19.

However, the profiles of LongCOVID patients do not match. It affects people with varying degrees of illness and “seems to include potentially young people,” including children, Diaz said.

Pandemic response priorities continue to prevent people from becoming infected with the virus and getting sick, but treatment of coronavirus cases also includes “care for returning to full health after an acute illness.” It must be included, “says Diaz.

Decrypt the code

According to Diaz, malaise is the most common symptom, including post-exercise malaise, cognitive dysfunction or brain fog, shortness of breath, palpitation, and neurological problems.

“It’s something we don’t understand how all of this is related. Why does one person get this and the other get it?” Researcher Diaz asked that the underlying mechanism of the disease causing these persistent symptoms needs to be elucidated.

“Is it due to a virus? Is it due to an immune response? If you have a better idea, you can target some interventions to alleviate the symptoms.”

Diaz said a “tremendous amount” of research is underway, a classic observational study that follows primarily discharged patients.

The first COVID-19 case was discovered in China in December 2019. However, the mysterious patient reached out and began to join the point only a few months later when LongCOVID began to appear on the radar.

“It was a tremendous move,” said Diaz, who took on the role of Long COVID in October.

In the first wave of the pandemic, the struggling health care system put patients in an acute illness, but “then they didn’t realize they hadn’t recovered to their previous health.”

She said patient-led research has encouraged scientists to do more research and “need to work together to get answers faster.”

“Keep hope”

The February 9th seminar, where scientists present their latest findings, will be the first in a regular series.

“For now, there will be enough descriptive data to start putting everything together,” said Diaz.

In addition to agreeing to the definition and name, the conference will begin standardized data collection methods for patient monitoring, opening the door to clinical prevention and management.

“We must quickly gain an understanding from each other’s experiences,” Diaz said.

Importantly, she added that the donors participated and were “really aware” of the urgent need for LongCOVID funding.

In a message to the millions of potential people who have been suffering long after being officially considered to have recovered, Diaz said, “Keep hope.”

“People may have prolonged symptoms, but we know that people are recovering. It may take a long time, but they are still recovering to their previous health. We are with you. ”

© 2021 AFP