In order to do the study properly, the subjects provided nasal and blood samples that were taken when they were diagnosed with the virus, during the time when they were infected, and also a few months after they weren’t positive anymore.
More than half of these participants stated that they felt symptoms such as fatigue, diarrhea, cough, loss of taste and smell, difficulty concentrating, shortness of breath, and even memory problems. All of them are linked to long Covid.
Approximately 37% of them stated that they had experienced at least three of the symptoms mentioned above, 24% of them reported only one or two of them, and the rest of the participants said that they didn’t feel any of these.
The team of researchers wanted to study these cases more properly, and these are the 4 common factors they have found:
1. Covid-19 RNA levels in the blood
Roughly one-third of the participants carried high levels of RNA or Covid-19 genetic material in their blood at the time they were diagnosed. By having that, they are more likely going to experience long Covid symptoms, such as memory-related problems.
The study suggested that these symptoms could be prevented or at least made less harsh if these participants would take antiviral medications.
In order to prevent these symptoms, the virus must be eliminated from the patients’ bodies immediately. However, given the fact that long Covid can occur in all types of patients, both with severe and mild symptoms, scientists don’t know for sure if an antiviral treatment would be suitable for everyone.
2. Specific antibodies
According to the study, the antibodies that appear when someone is infected are actually higher in quantities once the infection period is over. They are responsible for attacking a part of the virus called nucleocapsid and they develop once the symptoms of long Covid have kicked in.
These antibodies create issues for the immune system due to the fact that they attack the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, known as ACE2. This enzyme’s role is to adjust the way the body responds to Covid by metabolizing a peptide that triggers the immune system.
Given the fact that these antibodies interfere with enzyme 2’s work, it makes them a suspect for long Covid. During a study conducted by UAMS Translational Research Institute, the researchers studied serum and plasma for ACE2 antibodies in 67 patients infected with this virus and 13 people who had no history of infection.
81% of the blood samples of people who were diagnosed with SARV-CoV-2 showed that they contained the antibodies that attacked the ACE2. They didn’t find these antibodies in the subjects who didn’t have a Covid-19 history.
