Hope is not a strategy. This is asinine. All this does is give cover to the health care industry for having nothing to show for it after almost 4 years of Long Covid, and decades to work this problem before, which isn't mentioned yet again.Many Canadians have had long COVID for almost 4 years. Researchers say there is hope.
Forty-two per cent of the people in Canada reporting lasting symptoms had them for a year or more - and for many, they haven't resolved, StatCan's report said.
But Canadian doctors and scientists want long COVID patients to know that research is accelerating.
Long COVID Web, a research network of close to 600 health-care practitioners, scientists and patients across Canada, aims to not only help manage symptoms, but also find “solutions to get rid of long COVID,” said Dr. Angela Cheung, the network's lead and a senior physician-scientist at University Health Network in Toronto.
Long COVID affects many different systems in the body, Cheung said, with the most common symptoms including fatigue, brain fog, cardiovascular problems and shortness of breath.
Cheung has seen many patients improve, and “quite a few” have even returned to their “baseline” functioning before COVID.
“Why some can return to baseline and others cannot, I'm not sure. But certainly it's something that we need to better understand,” she said.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/many-...-years-researchers-say-there-s-hope-1.6688628
UCSF Department of Medicine said:Starting NOW - Zoom #UCSFMGR with End-of-Year Update on Long COVID from Drs. @MichaelPelusoMD @zalaly @VirusesImmunity moderated by Dr. @Bob_Wachter - a fascinating hr w/ live-tweets here to follow.
Next up, our own @UCSFHospitals Dr. @MichaelPelusoMD - LIINC Cohort has enrolled > 1000 pts & >50 collabs & is part of national NIH RECOVER program. Long COVID is the newest infxn-associated chronic illness, including ME/CFS, Ebola, EBV, etc. CDC recs these tests for dx.
Viral persistence is one mechanism that is getting a lot more data to support. Dr. @MichaelPelusoMD shows that plasma antigen persistence over time more commonly have more risk of LC symptoms-jury still out if causative.
With some slides.Dr. @MichaelPelusoMD blinded randomized clinical trial targets viral persistence via monoclonal Ab well underway w/ results next yr. What's coming in 2024? More bio understanding, more collab science, more clinical trials. NEED more funding & advocacy: https://longcovidmoonshot.com
1News Reporter Joy Reid, who has been battling Long Covid throughout 2023, describes the difficult journey back to health and the strain it puts on her family.
“Mum, I’ve told Santa that I don’t want any presents this year if he can make you better.”
That was the moment I broke. My seven-year-old daughter asking Santa to heal me made me realise how much Long Covid isn’t just affecting me, it’s impacting the entire family.
Two years ago, I was a fit, active, bubbly and social. An energetic journalist, mother of three, wife and CEO of a small charity. I would pride myself on my career, the juggle and how much I could fit into a day, often on little sleep (thanks to my night-waking toddler).
Now, I’m mostly housebound. I nap each day, I can’t work, I can’t easily socialise or look after my children for long periods or carry out household chores. Even washing my hair can be a challenge at times.
I can’t handle loud environments, I struggle to walk more than a few hundred metres at a time and I have purchased a wheelchair to get around on my bad days. My heart is doing funny things, I have regular headaches and my sensory and autonomic nervous system functions are out of whack. The list goes on.
That's why I don't try hard to find a treatment for ME. Trying to get anything treated is exhausting.Thanks for posting. The thing about the writer's experiences that struck me most, apart from feeling sympathy with her suffering, is the amount of time and energy and money she has invested in visiting multiple doctors, trying a very long list of unproven treatments and diets etc, and all to no avail, she is sicker than ever. All that experimentation and hundreds of doctors visits sounds exhausting.
Includes link to the recent "Long-term outcomes following hospital admission for COVID-19 versus seasonal influenza: a cohort study" paper. Meanwhile public health and health care officials are ignoring LC entirely, so it's good to see someone on the science side pay attention to the, you know, science.Dr. Mona Nemer - Chief Science Advisor of Canada said:Hospitalization due to influenza or covid carries risk of death, long-term illness and hospital readmission, and the risks are much higher for covid. @zalaly @LongCOVIDWebCA
Haven't watched .
The article has been translated in English, with the title "There Is Money in Prevention", and I can view it without a paywall.Business press continues to do a far better job covering the impacts of COVID. It affects the bottom line and productivity of companies everywhere.
What companies can do against Long Covid
Harvard Business Manager
https://www.manager-magazin.de/harv...smarkt-a-26e2413c-076c-43ac-b3ef-5bef4348a4ac
"The researchers discovered that a SARS-CoV-2 infection substantially diminishes cognitive performance in those affected: Subjects processed visual information more slowly and experienced faster exhaustion compared to a similarly sized control group."
"'We interpret this as evidence of chronically diminished brain activity in Long COVID, primarily manifesting as slowed information processing,' states Kathrin Finke, the psychological head of the Jena Post-COVID Clinic."
"There is growing evidence that Long COVID's effects could have a more lasting impact on the economy than the lockdowns did."
"A virus that slows down cognitive processes, leading to persistently higher absenteeism and increased occupational disability, is a concerning prospect for the business world."
"Afschin Gandjour estimates the economic impact of Long COVID in Germany, assuming an average of 84 days of work incapacity per person and a daily production loss of 124 euros."
"This results in an annual production loss of 3.4 billion euros for businesses in Germany alone, with additional billions in costs to the health and pension systems."
"An online survey reveals that participants suffering from Long COVID reported an average of 237 days of sick leave, amounting to 22,200 euros in work absence per person."
"The 'immunity debt' theory as an explanation for post-lockdown illnesses has been debunked, as it does not exist in medical science."
"'We estimate that one in ten infections leads to Post-COVID,' says (director-general of the WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, suggesting hundreds of millions might need long-term treatments."
"Many people are contracting COVID-19 two to three times a year, with some experiencing up to half a dozen infections."
"Younger, high-functioning individuals are particularly at risk, with 35 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds and 40 percent of 30- to 39-year-olds affected."
"Only some individuals fully recover from Long Covid, while most have lasting health limitations."
"There is no effective, recognized therapy for Long Covid, and some prescribed rehab measures can cause complete occupational disability."
"The lifting of COVID measures brought a sense of relief, but has led to high sickness rates and productivity losses due to the ongoing impact of the virus."
"Companies face a choice: continue facing the consequences of a 'Mass Disabling Event' or actively protect their workforce, possibly until a vaccine providing sterile immunity is developed."
support people to minimise the impairment their symptoms cause by pacing of physical and cognitive activities. Importantly, this doesn’t involve pushing through fatigue.
These steps are not a cure but they may improve a person’s ability to function in their day-to-day life, at work and to fulfil their caring responsibilities.
Ruby Biezen from the APPRISE Network and the University of Melbourne and Andrew Lloyd from the Kirby Institute at UNSW contributed to this article.