July 7, 2022 – The long COVID continues to affect millions of people who have contracted and recovered from their initial COVID infections.
Despite the high number of people suffering from the disease, there are still many unknowns when it comes to long COVID. But a new study examining mice has revealed the possible causes of long-term COVID and the best way to treat it.
The researchers found that the surviving mice had pulmonary fibrosis, or a scarring of the lung tissue, as well as chronic inflammation in the lungs a few weeks after they were removed from the virus. Mice that received an early dose of molnupiravir, one of three FDA-approved antivirals for the treatment of COVID-19, found that their disease and persistent symptoms were less severe.
Although the results of the mouse studies do not apply directly to humans, “COVID-19 in mice and humans represents key findings that may be translatable to other emerging pathologies of coronavirus disease,” the authors wrote.
The most recent data from the CDC found that nearly 1 in 5 American adults who previously had COVID-19 have symptoms of what has come to be known as long-term COVID, which include fatigue, shortness of breath, brain fog, and mental health and more.