Long COVID

HHS, through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, has awarded $45 million in grants to support multidisciplinary long COVID clinics and expand coordinated and comprehensive care.

Within days of the California Tough Mudder race on Aug. 19 and 20, the Sonoma County Health Department issued a health advisory, stating some participants had contracted Aeromonas bacterial infections.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been described by Anthony S. Fauci, MD, as “the most catastrophic acute infectious disease outbreak” in more than a century.

A large study found that long COVID-related conditions may persist among patients for as long as 2 years after recovery from acute disease, with COVID-19-related hospitalization increasing the risk sharply.

Distinguishing between long COVID and fibromyalgia has challenged health care providers across specialties, but rheumatologists may be positioned to clearly define both conditions and offer patients much-needed relief and respect.

The prevalence of long COVID has stabilized since January 2023, with roughly one in 10 adults with previous COVID-19 experiencing some form of the condition, a recent study showed.

The prevalence of long COVID has declined in the United States among the general population and people with a previously documented case of COVID-19, although many adults still report persistent symptoms, a pair of studies found.

Following SARS-CoV-2 infection, mitochondrial function remained impaired in the heart, liver and kidneys, despite observed recovery in the lungs, according to a human autopsy and animal tissue study.

The NIH announced that it has launched phase 2 clinical trials that will evaluate potential treatments for long COVID conditions as part of its Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery, or RECOVER, initiative.

Long COVID symptoms are more common in patients with inflammatory rheumatic disease vs. those without such conditions, according to data published in The Lancet Rheumatology.