Long Covid, with the Omicron variant infection you are less likely to suffer from it – breaking latest news

After an infection with the Omicron variant less likely to suffer from Long Covid than an infection with the original version of the coronavirus. Confirming what had already emerged last June thanks to research published in The Lancet by scientists from King’s College London is now the conclusion of a Swiss study conducted by Carol Strahm, of the Division of Infectious Diseases and Hospital Epidemiology of the Cantonal Hospital of St. Gallen, out of over a thousand healthcare workers. The work will be presented at the Congress of the European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases in Copenhagen between 15 and 18 April.

How the study was carried out

The research involved 1,201 operators from 9 Swiss health networks, 81% women, with an average age of 43, recruited between June and September 2020. The authors’ objective was evaluate post-Covid aftermath rates in doctors infected with wild-type Sars-CoV-2 virus, the original Wuhan version, with the first variant Omicron (BA.1) or both, compared to a control group composed of people who had not been infected. Participants underwent regular Covid-19 tests (nasopharyngeal swabs and antibody tests), provided information on their vaccination status and responded three times – in March 2021, in September 2021 and in June 2022 – to online questionnaires investigating on 18 Long Covid symptoms and fatigue levels.

The most frequent ailments

Disorders that persisted longest and were most often reported included: loss of taste and smell, tiredness-weakness, burnout-exhaustion, hair loss. In summary, the researchers observed that healthcare workers infected with the first version of Sars-CoV-2 had a probability of Long Covid up to 67% higher than those not infected; an increased risk which over time has dropped to +37%. Among those infected with the original virus, the greater probability of fatigue compared to the uninfected was 45% greater at the beginning, and then decreased until it reached a non-statistically significant difference.

The healed by Omicron

As for those recovered from Omicron, compared to the non-infected ones, they did not show an increased risk of either Long Covid or fatigue. It has also been seen that getting reinfected with Omicron after a previous infection with the original virus did not result in a higher probability of Long Covidcompared to a single original virus infection.

At the beginning of the pandemic, one in eight patients recovered from Sars-CoV-2 instead developed Long Covid according to an estimate by The Lancet. Another work had concluded that two years after hospitalization more than half of the patients still have at least one symptom (but we always refer to the first variants)

Public health problem

Long Covid is a significant public health problem, with a protracted and sometimes debilitating disease state, limited treatment options and uncertain outcome Strahm explains. Most of the available data on post-infection sequelae comes from people who contracted Covid-19 relatively early in the pandemic, before the emergence of the Omicron variant in late 2021, the researcher points out. But with the advent of Omicron and its global dominance with the resulting explosion of infections – he says – it is essential to find out more about who is at risk of Long Covid now and why.

The role of acquired immunity

Regarding the data collected, which indicate a lower risk of persistent post-infection disorders with Omicron, the researchers are advancing only hypotheses. Probably what has been observed – they say – is linked to a combination between the fact that the Omicron variant is less likely to cause serious disease than the wild-type virus (we know in fact that Long Covid is more common after the severe forms) and immunity acquired through previous exposure to the virus.

Reassuring data

With Omicron still globally dominant, the Swiss scientist believes our findings should reassure those who are now infected for the first time, as well as those who have already contracted the original virus infection. However – Strahm points out – it is important to note that the participants in our study were mostly healthy, young, vaccinated women. Therefore, the results could be different in a sicker, older and/or unvaccinated population. In fact Omicron is so widespread and contagious, with more serious consequences for the elderly and unvaccinated people than in absolute terms the syndrome, at least for a few months after the arrival of Omicron, involved many people.

Long Covid and heart

Just a few days ago, a study presented at the annual conference of the American College of Cardiology in New Orleans concluded that those who suffer or have suffered from Long Covid are more than twice as likely to experience cardiovascular problems in the months following the infection. The results of this study, collected from 11 studies on over 5.8 million people worldwide, clearly indicate that Long Covid endangers the heart, increasing the cardiovascular risk and the risk of developing symptoms such as breathlessness, palpitations or chest pain compared to who has never had the infection.