After a slow start, researchers are beginning to test ways to combat the lasting symptoms of the disease.
that block oxygen flow to tissues. It is also possible that a SARS-CoV-2 infection can wreak long-term havoc on gut microorganisms.
All of this complicates clinical-trial design, says Landray, an architect of RECOVERY, a large UK trial of treatments for acute COVID-19. That trial took just four months to find that low doses of the steroid dexamethasone Another set of trials aims to tackle COVID-19’s lingering impact on the cardiovascular system. Some studies have found evidence of inflammation in the lining of blood vessels and suggest that, in some people, this could trigger the formation of microclots that then clog the lung’s tiniest vessels, the capillaries.
An indirect assessment of Lagevrio and Paxlovid’s impacts on long COVID could come later this year: both companies say researchers will continue to follow clinical-trial participants for six months after treatment. Gilead is exploring collaborations to test remdesivir in people with long COVID.
Although the United States and United Kingdom have dedicated large sums of money to long-COVID research, relatively little of that has gone to finding treatments, says Altmann. “I feel like there hasn’t been the kind of will from the top that we need,” he says.