Long Covid: Recent knowledge of causes and treatment options!

Long Covid: Recent knowledge of causes and treatment options!

Long-Covid symptoms are increasingly researched, especially with regard to their profound effects on the quality of life of those affected. In Austria, up to 80,000 people are affected, including many children and adolescents. Dr. Christine Reiler addresses the challenge of dealing with the ongoing symptoms on Saturday, December 14, 2024 on Saturday, December 14, 2024. The symptoms range from extreme exhaustion to concentration disorders and can severely affect the life of those affected, as the urgent reports of a 19-year-old Viennese show who largely spends their lives in bed.

unexplored causes and new knowledge

Long Covid includes over 200 different symptoms that can occur weeks or months after a Covid 19 infection, and the exact causes have not yet been sufficiently examined. Notes indicate autoimmune reactions and persistent inflammatory processes. According to a study presented by The Conversation, people with Long Covid show a change in the muscle structure because they have a higher number of so-called “fast twitch glycolytic muscle fibres”, which are susceptible to fatigue. This could explain why those affected often suffer from exhaustion after physical exhaustion. Mitochondrial dysfunctions, which are decisive for the energy supply of the muscle cells, also seem to play a central role.

Another central result of this research is the detection of so-called “microclots” in the muscles of Long Covid patients. These clumped proteins could disturb the microcirculation and thus further impair the mitochondrial functions. It is crucial for treatment to strengthen mitochondrial health, as this could have potentially positive effects on the symptoms of Long Covid. The newly presented National Action Plan in Austria, where over 60 experts have participated, aims to improve the care of patients with post -viral syndromes and this also includes the careful examination of therapeutic approaches that aim at the mitochondria to help those affected. Further details on the topic are in the reportage of and in the article by The conversation to be found.