About Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions
©Arlene R. Taylor, PhD
The voice on the first call of the afternoon belonged to a good friend
who had avoided “death-by-covid” after multiple hospitalizations and a
long and painful recovery. “It’s been several months now,” he said. “I’m
still not back to my pre-illness level of health. My last doctor suggested
I might be dealing with Long COVID, but I don’t really understand
much about that.”
On the heels of that call, an email arrived from a woman who
introduced herself as someone “who is learning so much from the
videos on your YouTube channel.” Turned out that she had just received a text from her
mother who had been diagnosed with Long Covid. The woman hoped I could tell her
“what in the world Long Covid means.”
I promised to write a brief summary and send it to each person. Here is that summary.
Long Covid or Post-COVID Conditions is a label for a complicated condition that impacts
one in five adults under the age of 65. It involves at least one lingering symptom that
persists from between one to six months after having tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
[SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the virus that causes the disease known as COVID-19.]
The results of a study by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, published in the journal
Nature Medicine, reported that after studying 35,000 cases in the United States, scientists
identified four main subtypes of Long COVID. Based on their symptoms, patients tended
to fall into one or more of four categories:
• Symptoms involving the cardiac and renal or kidney systems (approximately 34%)
• Symptoms involving the respiratory system, sleep, and anxiety (approximately 33%)
• Symptoms involving the musculoskeletal and nervous system (approximately 23%)
• Symptoms involving the digestive (approximately 10%) and respiratory systems
The National Center for Health Statistics reported that more than 3,500 Americans died
of Long COVID during the first 2.5 years of the pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided a list of symptoms that have
been associated with Long COVID. These include:
General Symptoms
• Fatigue that interferes with daily life
• Symptoms that get worse after physical or mental effort
• Fever
• Joint or muscle pain
• Rash
• Changes in menstrual cycles for females
Respiratory and heart symptoms
• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Cough
• Chest pain
• Heart palpitations
Neurological symptoms
• Brain fog
• Headache
• Sleep problems
• Dizziness when you stand up
• Pins-and-needles feelings
• Change in smell or taste
• Depression or anxiety
Digestive symptoms
• Diarrhea
• Stomach pain
There is no one test for Long COVID. Consequently, the CDC suggests that if it has been
30 days since you tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and symptoms persist, see your
health care practitioner as you may have Long COVID. Write down your symptoms so
you can provide an accurate description. Some individuals develop persistent symptoms
but had no idea they had been infected. Those, too, should see their health care
practitioner sooner than later as there are treatments that may help your recovery.
The best way to avoid Long COVID is to avoid becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2.
However, that is not always possible. There is no way on Planet Earth that you can
prevent everything. The SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 that can lead to Long
COVID is said to be as contagious as a cold or the flu—and variants are likely here to
stay. That underpins the reason for recommendations to wear a mask when going out
shopping or using public transportation, staying six feet away from others when possible,
washing your hands frequently, and avoiding large gatherings of individuals. Making
healthier choices on a consistent basis may help you experience a milder case if you do
become infected and reduce your risk for developing Long COVID.
As a nurse epidemiologist and a brain function specialist, I suggest that living a longevity
lifestyle matters, and that includes following protective guidelines.