The Long Covid Research Initiative

A patient-driven movement to accelerate Long Covid Research

Million people with Long Covid¹

Million children with Long Covid¹

$386B

Economic cost of Long Covid to the USA to date²

The Long Covid Research Initiative is a movement of patients, researchers and clinicians. We are driving research into the causes of Long Covid to urgently find treatments.

Long Covid is a devastating global health problem – a debilitating disease with tens of millions of sufferers, vast economic costs and no meaningful treatments.

We believe that Long Covid may be a persistent SARS-CoV-2 infection. Whilst there are many theories regarding the pathophysiology – including microclotting, reactivated pathogens, and autoimmunity – persistent infection ties all these theories together. SARS-CoV-2 is one of many viruses which can chronically persist.

We have two focus areas as we investigate the role of persistent infection as a cause of Long Covid:

Investigating the underlying pathologies of Long Covid. Particularly identifying virus hiding in the body’s tissues.

Establishing adaptive platform trials for rapid testing of repurposed and late stage therapeutics, including antivirals.

RNA for SARS-CoV-2 (pink) and the ACE2 receptor (white), found in salivary gland cells, outlined in green. Credit: NIH.

¹ Symptoms lasting longer than 12 weeks. Extrapolated from UK’s ONS data, up to May 6th, 2022. Extrapolated to world population excluding China, adjusted for demographics.

² Estimate from SolveME whitepaper Long Covid Impact on Adult Americans: Early Indicators Estimating Prevalence and Cost