Long Covid cannot be blamed for constant tiredness, brain fog or muscle pain, study suggests

Constant tiredness. Brain fog. Muscle pain. 

These are nan astir communal complaints by group pinch 'long Covid'. 

But a caller study suggests these symptoms are conscionable arsenic apt to hap successful group who ne'er caught Covid.

After pursuing thousands of  group who had and had not tested positive, nan squad recovered Covid made 'no difference' successful whether aliases not personification would spell connected to create those issues - fatigue, problems pinch reasoning aliases memory, and musculus pain.

The study, dubbed INSPIRE and funded by nan CDC, is portion of a increasing assemblage of investigation suggesting that long Covid symptoms could beryllium overblown aliases attributed to different illnesses. 

Long Covid besides been thrust backmost into nan spotlight recently, arsenic Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner's daughter Violet Affleck based on successful favour of disguise mandates. 

The 18-year-old claims she contracted a 'post-viral infection' successful 2019.

Researchers astatine nan University of California - Los Angeles (UCLA) recruited much than 4,000 adults who tested affirmative for Covid betwixt December 2020 and August 2022.

The participants were divided into 2 groups: Covid-positive and Covid-negative.

Among some groups, 3 to 4 percent of participants reported symptoms accordant with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) - a illness that causes utmost fatigue, encephalon fog, and akin symptoms. 

This uncovering suggests that Covid made 'no difference' successful whether aliases not personification would create nan illness, moreover though Covid has agelong been considered a origin of ME/CFS. 

Dr Joann Elmore, co-senior writer of nan study and professor of soul medicine and wellness services investigation astatine UCLA, said: 'ME/CFS is nary much apt to hap successful group infected with COVID-19 than group pinch different acute illnesses.'

However, nan prevalence of ME/CFS 'could enforce a very precocious load connected nine and our healthcare system,' she said.

One awesome caveat though is that ME/CFS is difficult to diagnose, arsenic location is nary gold-standard trial to find nan disease. This intends that symptoms for illustration exhaustion could beryllium owed to different illnesses.  

The researchers recruited 4,378 participants ages 18 to 64 who tested affirmative for Covid betwixt December 2020 and August 2022 and were symptomatic. 

Patients older than 65 were excluded to norm retired 'age-related' illnesses that could lend to ME/CFS.

The mean subordinate property was 38, and astir 68 percent of patients were female.  

At each three-month follow-up, astir one-third of participants successful some groups reported astatine slightest 1 of nan pursuing 5 symptoms: postexertional malaise (feeling tired aft minimal beingness aliases intelligence activity), unrefreshing sleep, fatigue, orthostatic intolerance (difficulty opinionated aliases sitting upright), and cognitive impairment.

This suggests that patients who did and did not person Covid had a akin denotation presentation. 

Unrefreshing slumber was nan astir communal denotation successful some groups. 

'Our findings propose that COVID-19 is nary much apt than different acute infections to beryllium associated pinch ME/CFS and that acute illnesses much broadly whitethorn beryllium associated pinch chronic denotation load from ME/CFS,' nan researchers wrote. 

There were respective limitations to nan research, including nan anticipation of false-positive trial results and symptoms being self-reported. 

However, nan investigation adds to a increasing assemblage of grounds suggesting that agelong Covid could beryllium overblown aliases debunked. 

One major study from researchers successful nan US, UK, and Denmark claimed that nan risks of agelong Covid person been 'greatly exaggerated' and that nan information is excessively 'broadly defined.' 

Other experts person based on that the information is 'indistinguishable' from different post-viral illnesses.  

The caller study was published Wednesday successful JAMA Network Open.