- A new study in The American Journal of Medicine found that people with Long COVID and myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) have similarly impaired vascular function. The small study assessed the blood vessel response of 17 people with Long COVID, 17 with ME, and 17 controls. The authors concluded that the impaired endothelial function (i.e., poor functioning of cells lining blood vessels) likely happens in the “early post-viral stage” and that it is not a result of deconditioning. “Findings strongly agree with a potential link between endothelial dysfunction, microclot formation, and persistent symptoms,” the authors wrote.
- Long COVID prevalence is not declining, according to a new study in Health Expectations. Researchers analyzed over 750,000 responses to a U.K. health survey and found that 5% of people who responded reported they had Long COVID, while another 9% were uncertain if they had Long COVID or not. Researchers concluded that the disease had a heavier impact on marginalized communities and that uncertainty was likely due to poor public health communication and awareness of the disease.
- A proof-of-concept study in BMC Neurology found that damage to the glymphatic system — which clears waste from the brain — and the blood-brain barrier may contribute to neurocognitive impairment in people with Long COVID. The authors suggested that a type of imaging called DTI-ALPS could serve as a non-invasive biomarker for the disease.
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