New Study Links COVID to Chronic Fatigue

New Study Links COVID to Chronic Fatigue
New Study Links COVID to Chronic Fatigue

United States: A new study which is published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine is shedding light on a concerning post-COVID condition: myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).

Using data from the RECOVER-Adult study and also the researchers who have explored how oftenly ME/CFS occurs in individuals recovering from COVID-19, identifying key symptoms and also comparing them to those in uninfected individuals and this is the groundbreaking research which is helping us understand the long-term health impact of COVID-19 like never before.

ME/CFS is a severely limiting disease that usually has a post-viral onset. It turns out that such viruses, as Epstein-Barr and Ross River, can cause ME/CFS, which manifests itself in chronic fatigue, post-activity tiredness, cognitive dysfunction, and night without proper sleep.

As reported by the newsmedical.net, the onset of COVID-19 across the world has led to worries on the new symptoms’ resolver as post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 or long COVID. Research published found that many long COVID patients complain of fatigue, presence of mind, and post-activity exhaustion, all of which are characteristic of ME/CFS.

However, information as to the rate of new ME/CFS cases following COVID-19 is scarce at present. This lack of information puts a constrains patients post COVID 19 by lacking a coherent approach to addressing ME/CFS.

Moreover, identification of PASC symptom clusters reveals a broad range of patient symptom load and includes one especially serious cluster connected to ME/CFS. Understanding such relationships is also crucial in order to inform healthcare approaches, refine diagnostic markers, and design therapies for this diverse, multidimensional phenomenon.

About the Study

In the present study, the team employed data collected from the RECOVER-Adult cohort and was a part of a long-term, epidemiological study performed across 83 sites across the United States. It comprised adults confirmed to have severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and matched controls without infection.

The participants were classified into three groups: acute infected, participants tested positive within a month of the infection being enrolled; post-acute infected, participants tested positive after 30 days of the infection being enrolled and negatives, participants with negative SARS-CoV–2 tests. Participants with any previous history of ME/CFS were also not included in the study.

The data was obtained using the study participants’ subjective symptoms and comorbidities documented at the study visits conducted after every three months. ME/CFS was diagnosed according to the IOM clinical case definition, including post MIL post exertional malaise, poor sleep quality, cognitive or orthostatic intolerance lasting for 6 months or more.