Story at a glance
- New research from scientists from King’s College London supports the idea that there are three different types of long COVID, each with their own symptoms.
- Researchers studied more than 1,000 people suffering from post-COVID syndrome and found that there are three different subtypes of the condition.
- The first subtype consisted of respiratory symptoms, the second neurologic and third autoimmune.
There are three different kinds of long COVID, and all have their own set of symptoms, according to researchers.
In a new preprint study — which means it has yet to be peer reviewed — on MedRxiv, a site that distributes unpublished research in the health sciences, scientists from King’s College in London analyzed the experiences of thousands of people across the U.K that were infected with the virus.
Researchers focused on 1,459 people living with post-COVID syndrome — which study crafters defined as having symptoms for at least 12 weeks after being infected with the virus — and were able to place patients into three main “symptom profiles.”
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PCS patients — which are also referred to colloquially as long COVID patients — placed in the first group suffered from respiratory symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath or palpitations.
The second group was made up of long COVID patients who experienced neurological symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, poor memory and headaches, which researchers said was experienced most commonly among those that had been infected with the alpha or delta variants, according to the study.
The third group consisted of people who had an immune-related response, the study says.
More than 7 percent of all U.S. adults are currently experiencing symptoms of long COVID, according to Census Bureau data. But while thousands of people are suffering from the condition not much is known about how to treat it.
Although more work is needed to confirm the study’s findings, it does offer some insight into the complexities of the virus and its impact on human health.
“These insights could aid in the development of personalised diagnosis and treatment, as well as helping policymakers plan for the delivery of care for people living with post-COVID syndrome,” the study states.
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