https://www.researchgate.net/profil...LONG-COVID-PATIENTS-A-RETROSPECTIVE-STUDY.pdf ORIGINAL ARTICLE February 2021 DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.14189.51683 AUTHORS: Del Franco, Aroldo 1; Carvallo, Hector 2; Hirsch, Roberto 3 1 Neumologist, Mercante Public Hospital 2 Professor of Internal Medicine, U.A.I. 3 Professor of Infectology, U.B.A. Buenos Aires, Argentina ABSTRACT: Long COVID convalescence has become a major issue in COVID infection. The variety and magnitude of sequelae has, so far, baffled scientific community, and no measure has proved to be both useful and reliable in diminishing and/or shortening it. We are summarising the outcomes in 856 patients previously admitted at a Public Hospital in the Province of Buenos Aires, due to moderate/severe COVID infection, who surmounted the infection and could be released later on. We selected those whose symptoms, and mainly, the duration of them- could be attributed to long convalescence (“long haulers”). In them, a simple post-COVID treatment with ivermectin (IVM) was applied, thus provoking a faster reduction of manifestations. KEY WORDS: long COVID long haulers ivermectin
Interesting to see the recognition of one type of Long Covid equalling post viral fatigue syndrome/ CFS from these Argentinian authors:
The authors suggest that Long Covid may be related to the virus remaining in tissues other than blood. They are fans of Ivermectin as a treatment of Covid-19. 856 patients discharged from a Buenos Aires hospital. 57 of these were still under the supervision of various specialists (4 of the 57 for fatigue). The remaining 799 (approximately even gender split) were given ivermectin for 8 weeks or until remaining symptoms ceased, whichever happened first. Up until this point, it's looking quite interesting. I'm willing to believe there's a reasonable rationale as to why ivermectin might help and I want to know what they found. But the pie chart below is the only report of the impact of the treatment - there are no figures given. It's quite extraordinary. It looks as though the red and violet slices of the pie are representations of the mean number of days people treated with ivermectin had symptoms. Whereas the big blue slice is a representation of how many days people without ivermectin had symptoms - presumably an average from the various reports of Long Covid from other countries that the authors mention earlier in the paper. So, I'm just guessing, but perhaps they are saying that the ivermectin reduced the average time of Long Covid symptoms by something like 10 to 20 times? I'm not sure what else to say, other than I wish the authors had had the benefit of good maths or science teachers somewhere along the way. Maybe they have identified a useful treatment, but this presentation is not helping anyone.
If the authors are reading this, thank you for your understanding that much of Long Covid is probably ME/CFS, and that trying to return people with the condition back to work before they are well isn't going to be helpful. Thanks for your concern for these people. Please reach out to colleagues familiar with study design and data presentation before doing more studies. There are people on the forum who would be pleased to review a study plan or draft report for you too.
