Long Covid in the media and social media 2023

part 2
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/04/05/long-a05.html

 

This could have a significant impact in the near future. There are many countries entering a population decline, and this will exacerbate it. LC hits a lot of people in their early adulthood. A lot of people who would have wanted to have children will be unable to. So many of us have been robbed of this privilege, ending relationships not because of the illness itself, but the horrible discrimination against it, and the total uncertainty that makes it impossible to plan, especially for something that demanding and expensive. Young adults are already struggling with the financial costs, this is just piling up.

There are countries giving cash and tax incentives to parents, in some cases while doing nothing to address the horrible work culture that is the main reason. Meanwhile they do nothing to fund research that would have a significant impact, because they are fully blind as to why this is happening. Making good decisions requires good evidence. An entire profession that refuses to even properly record basic data leads to absurd outcomes like this. There is not a single bit of data anywhere that makes the connection as to why I, and so many, don't and never will have children. This is knowable, and yet it is impossible to verify because of traditional belief systems. Pure genius system: blind and arrogant about it.

 

A social and medical examination of Long COVID as a “mass disabling event”: Part 2

The end of the article talks about the lack of research funding, including for ME/CFS. Bolding is mine.

Edited to add the title of the article.

 

Podcast: It's not just in your head
Ep #132: Long Covid (Dr. Asad Khan)

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2MAmfckreOnjfSNuM6PfP1

 

Medscape Doctor's Checklist for Treating Long COVID Patients

Mentions among other PEM, dysautonomia and exercise intolerance.

Quote:

PEM is the worsening of symptoms after physical or mental exertion. This usually occurs a day or two after the activity, but it can last for days, and sometimes weeks.


"It's very different from fatigue, which is just a generalized tiredness, and exercise intolerance, where someone complains of not being able to do their usual workout on the treadmill," he noted. "People with PEM are able to push through and do what they need to do, and then are hit with symptoms anywhere from 12 to 72 hours later."

 

Blood differences in long Covid patients

New research has found molecular signature differences in the blood of patients who fully recover from Covid-19 and those who develop long Covid.

The study, which involved Cardiff University, examined blood samples from Covid-19 patients at different stages of the disease, including early stages and patients with long Covid. It highlighted major differences in the immune responses between those who recovered and those who developed long-term complications.

Professor Bernhard Moser from Cardiff University’s School of Medicine who was part of the research team said: “A considerable number of patients infected with Sars-Covid-2 during the pandemic developed long Covid, a chronic inflammatory condition characterised by fatigue, muscle pain, shortness of breath and other symptoms.

“The reason why some Covid-19 patients develop long Covid is currently not known but may be multi-factorial. Gaining insight into this disease at a molecular level may open avenues for treatment.”

The research highlighted that long Covid patients showed differences in chemokines, a group of proteins secreted in response to Covid-19 that orchestrate inflammatory immune responses.

Professor Moser said: “Our research showed that levels of chemokines were elevated in Covid-19 patients, contributing to the inflammation we see during Covid-19 infection. Importantly, we also found that Covid-19 patients produce auto-antibodies against chemokines.

“In patients that recover from Covid-19, molecular analyses of these antibodies revealed that they neutralise the function of a set of chemokines, suggesting that they act against inflammation and contribute to disease resolution.

“But in patients with long Covid, auto-antibodies that work against three distinct types of chemokines are missing, suggesting that lack of their production contributes to chronic inflammation underpinning long Covid.

“This study shows that the molecular signature in blood differs between patients who fully recover from Covid-19 and patients who develop the chronic inflammatory condition associated with long Covid. Auto-antibodies for certain chemokines are beneficial for Covid-19 patients in that they seem to prevent the development of long Covid.”

https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/2713678-blood-differences-in-long-covid-patients

Thread here: Autoantibodies against chemokines post-SARS-CoV-2 infection correlate with disease course, 2023, Cavalli et al

 

Alan Carson, of FND fame, supporting "properly conducted" trials of exercise for Long Covid.

"Despite the anxiety it remains case that no randomised trial or systematic review of trials has ever shown harm from exercise in PEM- whilst NICE often cited it did not find any RCT evidence of harm. Properly conducted trials will tell us one way or t’other- important question"

 

Clearly, causing severe disability in thousands, millions even, is not considered harm. It simply has to not be recognized by the people doing the harm. Great system they got there. About as legitimate as a judge committing a crime, then saying "I'm a judge, this is not a crime" and letting it go. Absurd.

And still with the No true Scotsman logical fallacy, as if "properly conducted" means anything, after having done their definitive-but-not-so-definitive-after-all trial, especially when in real life it usually takes the form of a quick "just exercise, bit more each week" and nothing else. This makes the whole "do no harm" have quite a different twist. It's a purely bureaucratic construct.

Especially in a profession that only started doing more good than harm barely over a century ago, despite being thousands of years old.

"Pragmatic" RCTs are not a valid tool, especially not in biased hands. These people are as biased as any company pushing a commercial product, Theranos also "found" that their machines worked, behind closed doors, no you can't see it. Generic "pragmatic" trials assess nothing, it's as good as an entirely self-graded education: perfect grades, zero knowledge gained.

 

More evidence of patients concerns being portrayed as abuse

 

When you’re the ultimate arbiter of what’s abusive, then any commentary you don’t like can attract the label. Carson was trained by Sharpe, and it shows

 

Rebuking someone's immoral behavior isn't abusive.

 

DARVO much. This is very mild and accurate... it's barely criticism, it's pointing out a basic fact. Absurd. These people abuse their power like bullies.

Good people never use DARVO. Never.

 

thats extraordinary, even for BPS/FND crowd. what was the initial tweet which he condescended to 'take seriously'?

So saying 'you dont listen when you should' is abuse now? crikey i hope he's told pretty much every married couple in Britain lol!

Oh yes and every parent in the world had better be reported to their countries' social services, they are all abusing their children!

 

The last two parts of the Long Covid series by Frank Gaglioti at World Socialist Web Site has now been published. The 4th and last part is on the history of postviral illness with a couple of mentions of ME/CFS.

A social and medical examination of Long COVID as a "mass disabling event"

Part 3

Part 4

quote:
The pattern of post-viral syndrome with coronavirus infection is repeated for other species of virus. Overwhelmingly, debilitating fatigue seems to be a common symptom, often referred to as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), also called myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) or ME/CFS. It is beyond the scope of this article to examine the entire plethora of viruses that cause post-viral syndrome or ME/CFS, but the sample considered here demonstrates the general rule.

 

It goes on to talk about SARS, MERS, Russian flu, Spanish flu, chicken pox and shingles,
Ebola virus, and Epstein-Barr virus. The following is about the Russian flu.

The following sections are from the conclusion.

Biden, the 2022 #MEAction protest in front of the White House, and recent changes including the April 1st Medicaid cutback.

 

Article from Germany on children, long Covid, ME/CFS and research on treatment approaches as pacing and relaxation techniques. Looks good from the google translation.

BR24 Post Covid bei Kindern: Forschung für Therapie
Google translation Post Covid in children: research for therapy

quote:

Elli was once a competitive athlete, did gymnastics and was a cheerleader. She has been suffering from Post Covid since her corona disease in February last year, her mother continues to report: "She has not been able to go to school since March last year. It was then clear that she could no longer walk the route. Climbing the stairs is difficult. It was an incredible problem for her. She has since been diagnosed with ME/CFS ."

ME/CFS stands for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. It is considered the most severe form of Post Covid. Affected people like twelve-year-old Elli suffer from extreme exhaustion. Also, their symptoms worsen after even minimal exercise.

...

In adults, scientists assume that Corona has at least doubled the number of patients with chronic fatigue. In the case of children, we don't know for sure. Some research questions are still open here. That's why the Würzburg doctor started a research project together with the children's clinic Rechts der Isar of the Technical University of Munich. In Munich, 50 children with the diagnosis are examined in detail. In Würzburg, a therapy and training concept is to be developed and tried out for the children. Not only the children are given methods in online courses. Parents, siblings and teachers should also be made aware of how to deal with the disease.

A particularly important tool is the so-called "pacing", explains pediatrician Juliane Spiegler: "Pacing means that I never fully exhaust my energy reserves, but use a maximum of 80 percent of my energy reserves before I have to take rest breaks again. If I'm used to The fact that I can always go above my stress limit is incredibly difficult."

In addition, relaxation exercises are trained and further information is provided about the disease.

 

Thank you, @Mfairma.

Thread
https://twitter.com/user/status/1645446140773507074


Text of tweets

 

Really well said @Mfairma ! Many thanks!