- An autopsy study found persistent SARS-CoV-2 virus in the hearts of some people who had died after having COVID-19. A part of the National Institute of Health’s RECOVER program, the researchers shared their unpublished results in a poster at a pathology conference this spring. The study included 74 participants who had expedited autopsies that included samples of blood and cardiac tissue. Of 11 participants who had SARS-CoV-2 genetic material, nine had reported Long COVID symptoms before their deaths. A July RECOVER press release stated that people with SARS-CoV-2 in their heart were “more likely to have changes in their immune system and heart structure” and that the research adds to growing evidence of different subsets of the disease.
- The July press release also shares other mid-year updates from RECOVER, including a summary of where the program’s clinical trials currently stand and information on observational and pathobiology studies. The NIH plans to open a new funding opportunity this summer for researchers studying Long COVID’s underlying causes, the update stated.
- A study from Brazil found that people with diabetes were more likely to be impacted by Long COVID. The retrospective study, published in Scientific Reports, included 870 participants who were hospitalized for COVID-19 in late 2020, comparing those with diabetes to those without. The researchers found that people with diabetes were more likely to have cardiovascular complications and had a worse quality of life. They also found a 7.3% rate of new diabetes cases in the non-diabetic cohort over the seven months of the study, adding more research to COVID-19’s role in increasing the risk of diabetes.
- A recent, small trial concluded that “cognitive rehabilitation” may be a potential therapy for the Long COVID. But the study, published in JAMA Network Open, found no improvements in debilitating symptoms like fatigue or sleep disturbances, nor did it find meaningful improvements in cognitive scores. Another larger trial on cognitive rehabilitation recently failed. The JAMA study found some improvements in “goal attainment.” “In the broader landscape of Long COVID treatment, cognitive rehabilitation falls well short of what is needed,” researcher Hannah Davis told TIME about the study. “The Long COVID patient community wants resources directed toward more curious and promising treatments and trials.”
