A patient-driven movement to accelerate Long Covid Research
Million people with Long Covid1
$386B
Economic cost of Long Covid to the USA to date2
Long Covid is no longer a mystery. New research is revealing key drivers of the condition, including evidence strongly suggesting that patients with Long Covid do not fully clear the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Instead, the virus may persist in tissue where it continues to provoke the immune system. This could drive a wide range of downstream consequences, such as blood clotting, neuroinflammation, and neuropathy. The persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in tissue is called a viral reservoir.
The Long Covid Research Initiative is establishing a virtual research institute with a two-pronged approach, consisting of research and therapeutics, with a shared focus on the topic of viral reservoir:
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 Aug 13th, 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
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