Many suffering from the illness have experienced chronic fatigue, depression, memory problems and an inability to focus. These life-changing symptoms have been reported six months after initially contracting the infection.
Sputnik spoke with Frances Williams, Professor of Genomic Epidemiology at St Thomas Hospital London to discuss the growing concerns around Long Covid and to find out just how serious the effects of it are.
Sputnik: Long Covid seems to be generally not very well understood at the moment. So could you explain exactly what it is? And why is it such a cause for concern?
Frances Williams: It's difficult to say at this stage exactly what it is. But we know that other viruses can leave people with long-lasting symptoms, particularly symptoms, vaguer symptoms like fatigue, and brain fog. And it's becoming evident that people that have had Covid can suffer from these symptoms, and also from other forms of organ-based dysfunction, like breathlessness. If they've had Covid, that might have affected the lungs, for example, we also know that Covid can upset the kidneys, to some extent, and possibly their muscles as well. And so there's a lot of work to be done to try and organise and understand which patterns of these symptoms fit together. So different studies tell us different answers to this. We've been working on the symptom app, the Covid Zoe symptom app, that tells us about people that are generally fairly fit. But there are other studies coming out of patients that have been admitted to hospital, for example. And they have quite marked evidence of damage to the organs like the kidneys and the lungs.
Sputnik: What are the most likely symptoms and effects of Long Covid?
Frances Williams: So what we found is that there are two sorts of patterns to the way in which people were affected by Long Covid. One of which is a muscular and brain. Giving people fatigue and headaches. And then we have more generalised gut-based symptoms, as well. So people often feel that they've got better, but then suddenly feel less well, in the month following Covid.
Sputnik: Who is most at risk from Long Covid. And in regards to gender are men or women more likely to be affected?
Frances Williams: So, women are more likely to be affected, and we see different trajectories with the age. So in men, the older age group are more affected by having Long Covid. But in women, it seems to peak in midlife, and then the risk goes down as they get older. So there are very different responses that we can see. But it is generally that women are more affected. And women who are overweight are also more likely to be affected than younger, leaner women.
Sputnik: How widespread a problem is Long Covid becoming?
Frances Williams: Well, I don't think it's becoming an enormously big problem. Obviously, as people become aware of these things, they can sort of worry that they've got them. But there’s no doubt that there is a syndrome out there that does need to be defined. So what our study has shown is that around 15% of women had symptoms a month after onset of the illness compared to 10% of men. And we still find that four or 5% of people are affected at two months out. So obviously, as time goes on, we get more and more information about how the condition lingers in people. But I would be surprised if we find that people are generally affected for a year, I would think that by then most people will have gotten better.
Sputnik: And as this is a new illness, are there any treatments available?
Frances Williams: We don't have treatments, specific treatments for this or for other post-viral syndromes. So there are particular viral illnesses that we know can cause troubles in the long term. And there's been a great deal of debate about how best to look after people with these problems. What we tend to recognise is that for folks that have very marked fatigue, they should be encouraged to pace themselves and not to push themselves. So the idea of taking out a gym membership to try and force you to get active is not a good idea in people who have been struggling with fatigue and really doing small chunk activities, and then having a rest is the best way to manage these sorts of problems.
