- A new study linked ongoing endothelial dysfunction in people with Long COVID with neuropsychiatric symptoms. The study, published in Brain, Behavior, & Immunity, included 50 participants with Long COVID, comparing them to “recovered” controls and people with acute COVID-19. They found a significant elevation of biomarkers related to the inner lining of blood vessels, “which correlated with lower fluency and verbal learning, linking vascular dysfunction to brain function.” The researchers aim to continue following this cohort and “identify therapeutic targets in Long COVID focused on vascular health and endothelial dysfunction.”
- A small observational study from Jamaica found that nearly half of pediatric participants met the diagnostic criteria for Long COVID after a confirmed SARS-C0V-2 infection. The study was published in The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal and included 74 participants under age 16. Of the cohort, 32% developed Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), a debilitating condition involving hyperinflammation. Researchers concluded that the incidence supports the need for improved care and testing “in similar resource-constrained settings.”
- A Long COVID clinical trial investigating the cancer drug (sirolimus) rapamycin was recently updated to have anopen label extension. This means that participants who receive the placebo in the randomized study have the opportunity to try the drug once they complete the initial part of the study. The trial is recruiting in New York and aims to recruit 80 participants. You can read more about low dose rapamycin and the trial in our past coverage. Study contact: David Putrino, coreresearch@mountsinai.org
