Coronavirus: You may develop these long COVID symptoms, depending on the COVID-19 variant you catch

The emergence of new COVID-19 variants not only changed the way the SARs-CoV-2 virus impacted us, but it also altered the kind of symptoms we experienced, it changed how the vaccines work and also motivated scientists to tweak or update the existing coronavirus vaccines. Furthermore, research has found that different COVID variants can lead to different long COVID symptoms. That said, let us first understand what long COVID is and whether its symptoms can be determined as per the COVID variants.

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Long COVID also known as post COVID-19 condition refers to the group of long term symptoms people experience long after they have had and recovered from the infection. "People who experience post COVID-19 conditions sometimes refer to themselves as long-haulers," says the World Health Organization (WHO).

According to the global health agency, these symptoms may persist from the time of the illness till after recovery. It may hinder a person's ability to complete daily activities and may hamper with normal routine.

A study conducted by Italian researchers found that people who were infected with the Alpha variant of COVID-19 presented different emotional and neurological long term symptoms as compared to individuals who caught the original SARs-CoV-2 virus. The research findings are set to be presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID 2022) in Lisbon next month.

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Dr. Michele Spinicci and his team of researchers from the University of Florence and Careggi University Hospital in Italy looked at and analysed 428 patients who were being treated at the Careggi University Hospital’s post-COVID outpatient service between June 2020 and June 2021. The specified duration was when both the original COVID virus and the Alpha variant were on the run, infecting most individuals.

The researchers found a substantial alteration in the pattern in which the neurological and emotional symptoms were being presented by the patients infected between March and December 2020. This is when the original virus was more dominant. Comparatively, those infected between January and April 2021, which was when the Alpha variant was dominant, showcased symptoms such as muscle aches and pain, insomnia, brain fog and anxiety/depression, while smell loss, loss of taste, and impaired hearing were less common.

"Many of the symptoms reported in this study have been measured, but this is the first time they have been linked to different COVID-19 variants", Dr. Spinicci said.

"The long duration and broad range of symptoms reminds us that the problem is not going away, and we need to do more to support and protect these patients in the long term. Future research should focus on the potential impacts of variants of concern and vaccination status on ongoing symptoms," he added.

The data collected for the study were obtained from the electronic medical records of hospitalized patients who were discharged 4-12 weeks before being a part of the outpatient service.

The study also listed down some of the most commonly reported long COVID symptoms in patients. These included shortness of breath (37%) and chronic fatigue (36%), followed by sleep problems (16%), brain fog (13%) and visual problems (13%).

As per the study analysis, those who suffered from severe illness, received immunosuppressant drugs such as tocilizumab, were 6 times as likely to report long COVID symptoms. On the other hand, people who required oxygen supply were 40 percent more likely to have post COVID symptoms.

The release by the ECCMID also suggested that women were more likely to report long COVID symptoms than men. Furthermore, it noted that people with Type 2 Diabetes were at a lower risk of developing long haul symptoms. However, the researchers believe more research is needed to back the findings.