Long-Haul COVID Patients:Prevalence of POTS Are Reduced but Cerebral Blood Flow Abnormalities Remain Abnormal with Longer Disease Duration 2022 Visser

[Sly Saint]

authors van Campen, Frank Visser

Abstract
Background:
Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) has been described early after the onset of the COVID-19 infection, but also orthostatic hypotension (OH). In the present study, we hypothesized that orthostatic intolerance decreases over time.

Methods:
In 29 long-haul COVID-19 (LHC) patients, a tilt test was performed, including measurements of cerebral blood flow (CBF) by extracranial Doppler. The time interval between the onset of infection and the tilt test varied between 3 and 28 months.

Results:
In the first 12 months after the infection, 71% of the LHC patients showed POTS and after 24 months none of them. In the first 12 months, 29% of patients had a normal heart rate and blood pressure response (normHRBP) and after 24 months 75% (distribution of POTS, OH, and a normHRBP over time: p < 0.0001). Linear regression showed that, over time, there was a decrease in the abnormal CBF during the tilt (p = 0.024) but remained abnormal.

Conclusion:
In LHC patients, hemodynamic abnormalities of a tilt test change over time. Patients studied early after the onset of the disease mainly exhibit POTS, but patients studied later in the time course mainly show a normHRBP or OH. In addition, the abnormal CBF reduction improves over time, but CBF remains abnormal.

https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/10/2105

 

[rvallee]

Still nearly half at 2 year mark. This is a significant illness, has a huge impact on society when considering the number of people this affects. Of course the worst impacts are because of negligence and the complete lack of support, so this should be easy to address, technically speaking.

But the most likely outcome of this is that since most recover over time there's no point doing anything, which means continuing negligence, no support and gaslighting aplenty. There is simply no understanding of what it's like to be ill.

Also it should technically put an end to the silly rehabilitation nonsense, which has clearly and blatantly attributed natural recoveries to their magical healing presence. But I doubt it will happen, the formula works too well since no one seems to care about blatant cheating and lying.

 

[RedFox]

It's a small study, but useful because it's novel. There's not a lot of data on how long Covid evolves over time from an objective, rather than a symptom-based angle.