The setup of proteins can be linked to typical symptoms of post-covid, primarily severe breathing difficulties. The same type has been found in people with other severe lung diseases.
The discovery was made through analyzes of blood samples from 265 patients in Sweden and the United Kingdom with long-term symptoms of post-covid. The study was conducted with more sensitive and detailed methods than before.
What makes it unique is that we see the same pattern in two completely different groups of patients. That kind of consistency we have not seen before, says Marcus Buggert, associate professor and research leader at Karolinska Institutet.
The participants in the study fell ill during the first period after the outbreak of the pandemic, before any vaccine was available. At the same time, blood samples were examined from people who had had covid-19 and recovered. Those blood samples did not contain the same elevated levels of protein setups.
Based on the results we have, there is a clear evidence that the patients have a persistent inflammation, cell damage or similar, says Marcus Buggert.
The proteins can be linked to inflammation and cell death, suggesting that there may be damage to lung tissue in people with post-covid. Therefore, the next step is to study tissue samples to get a better picture of the cause behind why it looks like it does.
Whether the study's results can lead to a possible treatment for post-covid or not is too early to say, according to Marcus Buggert.
It can provide a possible explanation for why some have severe symptoms long after covid, and it can eventually provide better diagnostics and treatment, but we are not there yet, he says.
Post-covid stands for "post-infectious condition after covid-19". It is a collective term for people who have persistent symptoms after an infection. There are several adjacent syndromes, for example, post-intensive care syndrome – patients with sequelae of long-term treatment in intensive care.
The symptoms vary greatly, but can, for example, be severe fatigue and generally poorer health. It can also involve more severe symptoms such as disturbances in the autonomic nervous system, impaired lung function, or damage to internal organs.
A patient can also have multiple symptoms. Many symptoms are also common in other diseases.
Post-covid occurs in both people who have had severe illness and among those who have had a mild disease course. Both older and younger people are affected, as well as children.
Source: National Board of Health and Welfare
