For essentially the most part, long COVID stays to be a mystery. That’s why the medical community and scientists across the globe proceed to check the condition and understand its causes, symptoms and other manifestations. 

In a review article published within the journal Nature Reviews Microbiology last week, a team of researchers from the Patient-Led Research Collaborative and the Scripps Research Translational Institute reported how long COVID was found to mimic other ailments and health problems in some cases. 

Throughout the first 12 months of the pandemic, experts already listed the common symptoms of long COVID. The list has since been updated and expanded to incorporate other characteristic manifestations of the condition. 

The list provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) comprised signs and symptoms typical of a COVID-19 infection, including but not limited to tiredness or fatigue, fever, cough, chest pain, difficulty respiratory, sleep problems and diarrhea, amongst others. 

Interestingly, the newly released review article stated that long COVID symptoms in various cases were nearly indistinguishable from other health problems, comparable to chronic fatigue syndrome, mast cell activation syndrome and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. 

The impacts of long COVID on quite a few organ systems lead to numerous pathologies, and the presentation of overlapping pathologies in patients can exacerbate management challenges, based on the researchers. 

The authors also found evidence that roughly 10% of individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 and battled COVID-19 develop long COVID. The mysterious condition can be said to be more prevalent in people between 36 and 50 years of age. Women also seem like more prone to developing persistent long COVID. 

Prior research showed that some people develop symptoms beyond the respiratory system. Many studies focused on the consequences of long COVID on the respiratory system. Meanwhile, little has been done to unravel the mystery behind the actual reason behind the condition or give you a sure-fire treatment for it, based on Medical Xpress. 

Last October, a special team of scientists reported of their study published within the peer-reviewed journal JAMA that around 90% of long COVID victims began with a gentle case of COVID-19. In addition they found that patients hospitalized on account of COVID-19 had a greater risk of developing long COVID than those that didn’t.