Medical and Scientific Research

Long COVID: major findings, mechanisms and recommendations (text)
Nature Reviews Microbiology — January 13, 2023

Excerpt: At least 65 million individuals around the world have long COVID, based on a conservative estimated incidence of 10% of infected people and more than 651 million documented COVID-19 cases worldwide; the number is likely much higher due to many undocumented cases…with many patients experiencing dozens of symptoms across multiple organ systems. The survey investigated the prevalence of long COVID symptoms such as fatigue, concentration difficulties, and dyspnea lasting more than four weeks after recovering from COVID-19. 

An estimated 19 million US adults living with long-COVID (text)
News Medical — December 26, 2022

Excerpt: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the number of long COVID cases to be one in every five COVID-19 cases. Studies indicate that the prevalence of long COVID is higher among women and individuals with multiple comorbidities or chronic conditions. However, a comprehensive understanding of long COVID risk factors, the impact of long COVID on the quality of life, and the effectiveness of vaccines and booster doses in protecting against long COVID are still lacking. 

COVID-19 Grand Rounds: Unlocking the Mysteries of Long COVID (video)
UCSF Department of Medicine — October 6, 2022

Summary: For most people, the threat of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 has plummeted since the early days of the pandemic. But the threat of long COVID – in the form of prolonged, sometimes disabling, symptoms – remains. Doctors and assistant professors of medicine at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), Lekshmi Santhosh and Michael Peluso (who is on our team), discuss what is known about long COVID through the lens of their experiences at UCSF and Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG).

Ziyad Al-Aly of Washington University in St. Louis joins them to discuss his research and its implications. He conducted pioneering studies that have demonstrated that each episode of COVID may elevate the long-term risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes, and cognitive decline.