After the long sufferable weeks from catching COVID-19, you would think you are in the clear; until, that is, you feel some extra “health-issues”. The term for these health issues, specifically after COVID-19, are called Long Covid (post-covid). Generally “one in two [covid recovered people] experienced long-term COVID manifestations” and the symptoms included are a diverse field of sickness. Penn State investigators mentioned the trend of symptoms from 250,351 unvaccinated adults and children:
Loss of General Well Being (weight loss, fevers, fatigue)
Decreased Mobility (1 in 5 experienced a decrease in mobility)
Concentration Issues
Lung abnormalities (6 in 10 survivors tight chests and a quarter of patients had difficulty breathing)
Digestive Issues
What could be the reason that COVID-19 is still lurking around in our bodies when the sickness is gone? Researchers at Yale University studying long-COVID have found a pattern of patients having an “unusual level of cytokines” also known as a cytokine storm. Cytokines are a secreted chemical proteins released by cells for communication. In the Immune System process, after a Macrophage, large phagocytic cells, ingests an antigen it releases cytokines, signaling for a t-helper cell to come. After the helper t-cell recognizes the antigen, more cytokines are released and trigger the Cell-Mediated and Humoral Responses (B and T cells). I mention all this because researchers are saying that post-covid patients tend to have patterns of irregular, more-than average cytokines being produced as well as an “unusual pattern of activity by…t cells. The greater than average amount of cytokines suggests a “state of chronic inflammation” and “kill tissues and damage organs.” The unusual activity of t-cells suggests that COVID-19 could still be lurking in the body.
Cytokine release and the numerous amounts of it
The treatment for these conditions are mostly to take the vaccine but there are still many unknowns to this Long-Covid problem. These problems are mostly lying in the Immune System rather than other parts of the body that can be tested with machines; which is why solving this problem is very difficult. This problem can only be solved by a matter of time and hope the scientists can figure this out.
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