iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Long COVID Signal

@longcovidsignal.bsky.social

100 followers 3 following 600 posts

Tracking the latest Long COVID research so you don't have to.

Posts Replies Media

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 10h

Airway resistance at end-exhale was elevated 2 years after severe COVID, even when standard lung tests appeared normal. Within-breath resistance variation was attenuated vs matched healthy controls in prospective observational study. (n=18) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42821478/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 17h

Brain-targeting autoantibodies were no more common in patients with persistent symptoms than in fully recovered individuals. NMDAR1 antibodies occurred at twice pre-pandemic rates but showed no link to symptoms at ~15 months post-infection. (n=703) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42819978/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Brain fog linked to reduced brain electrical responses during attention tasks vs both non-fog and pre-pandemic controls. Lower accuracy and slower reaction times persisted ~23 months after symptom resolution, suggesting lasting attentional deficits. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42600249/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Patients showed impaired small vessel responses — blunted reactions to restricted blood flow and delayed recovery — vs age-matched controls. These vascular changes tracked with reduced NAD+/NADH ratio, a marker of cellular energy imbalance, in obs study. (n=83) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42712136/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Endothelial dysfunction persisted ~3 years post-infection despite normal heart function on echo. Peak oxygen uptake was 61% vs 77% predicted in controls, and vessel dilation correlated with exercise capacity in case-control study. (n=21) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42810981/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

No shared brain-targeting autoantibody pattern distinguished patients with neurological symptoms from controls across two cohorts. Spinal fluid and blood showed only sparse, patient-specific immune reactions in cross-cohort case-control analysis. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42809339/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

A blood DNA methylation signature distinguished patients from healthy controls across two independent prospective cohorts. Sixteen altered regions were driven mainly by helper T cells and overlapped with changes in pulmonary fibrosis risk. (n=203) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42809362/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

VR exercise therapy did not significantly outperform conventional exercise in reducing fatigue in a German double-blind RCT. Only the VR group crossed the minimal meaningful improvement threshold, with less symptom worsening (9% vs 22%). (n=100) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42809480/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

235 proteins linked to 15 of 21 post-COVID symptoms, forming six clusters tied to metabolic and inflammatory pathways Symptoms sharing similar protein profiles co-occurred more often in a proteomic observational study (n=495) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42805392/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

No somatosensory differences found vs controls, providing no support for the sensory attenuation model of fatigue. 64% met severe fatigue criteria. Fatigue was higher at baseline and rose more during exertion, yet task performance was similar in cross-over study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42789376/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Spike and nucleocapsid proteins persisted months after infection despite antibodies. A high-nucleocapsid subgroup showed vascular inflammation. In mice, remnant viral proteins drove organ inflammation after virus cleared; steroids reduced it. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42781857/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

T cell dysregulation found in both airways and blood of patients with persistent respiratory symptoms vs controls. CD4 T cells increased in airway fluid, dual CD4/CD8 T cells elevated in blood, and anti-histone autoantibodies raised in obs study. (n=30) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42785801/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Worsening cardiometabolic health after infection linked to 36% higher odds of symptoms, even after adjusting for social factors and comorbidities Retrospective cohort using a validated severity score based on BMI, blood sugar, blood pressure, and lipids (n=6,364) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42772376/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Over 80% of hospitalized patients reported long-term symptoms — neuromuscular and cognitive effects early, mood and breathlessness persisting to 12 months. Gender strongly linked to persistent breathlessness, mood, and gut issues in a UK multisite cohort. (n=425) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42767748/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Patients showed lower brain blood flow and slower reaction times vs matched controls during sustained attention, with greater fatigue afterward. Regional blood flow was up to 40% lower in specific brain areas in case-control fMRI study. (n=41) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42761604/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Early nirmatrelvir linked to ~12% lower risk, molnupiravir to ~8-9% lower risk, in Medicare adults 65+ with COVID. 14% developed symptoms overall. Deep learning approach correcting for timing bias matched traditional estimates in US observational study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42755490/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

mRNA vaccination was not associated with worsening symptoms or impaired recovery over 3–6 months. Both vaccinated and unvaccinated groups improved in fatigue and exercise capacity with no significant difference between them in German obs study. (n=174) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42755271/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Genetic variants and post-infection gene changes converged on 15 heart-related genes tied to arrhythmia and remodeling Genes grouped into genetically primed, inherited-only, or virus-driven classes in Indian patients combined with hamster model pilot study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42508134/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

In high-risk patients, anti-Spike antibody levels correlated strongly with virus-blocking ability for Delta (r=0.91) but weakly for Omicron (r=0.64). Vaccinated patients had lower antibody levels but better virus-blocking capacity in Italian observational study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42744669/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Central sensitization was present in 81% of patients referred for standing intolerance. Those affected had greater drops in brain blood flow while upright and higher IL-6 levels vs those without, in a cross-sectional study. (n=169) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42308676/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Graves' disease patients on antithyroid therapy saw a modest rise in TT3 at 12 weeks post-infection, while most thyroid indices stayed stable 51% met criteria; smoking linked to ~5× higher odds in this retrospective cohort (n=220) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42734612/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Loss of smell and taste linked to neurological symptoms but not cardiorespiratory fitness in a cross-sectional study. Smell loss had ~2x odds of dizziness; taste loss had ~3x odds of memory problems. Exercise capacity showed no difference. (n=201) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42726454/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Neutralizing antibody capacity was significantly lower in patients vs recovered controls, despite comparable T-cell and cytokine responses. IL-6 emerged as a potential long-term inflammation biomarker in this cross-sectional study. (n=148) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42720191/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Blood lactate rose ~sixfold from rest to peak exercise in a clinical series, but values depend on protocol, fitness, and medications. Narrative review concludes lactate is most useful as part of a broader metabolic exercise profile, not a standalone diagnostic test. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42716325/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

79% of post-COVID clinic patients reported respiratory symptoms, linked to worse physical function despite mostly preserved lung function. Early respiratory symptoms were the strongest predictor of persistence (~5× odds) in Swedish longitudinal study. (n=963) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42717356/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Inflammatory markers and ferritin rose while iron and transferrin fell in hospitalized patients vs controls, scaling with severity. Immune cell gene analysis confirmed these disruptions persist in severe cases — Italian multicentre observational study. (n=283) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42707311/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Viusid (antioxidant supplement) improved brain fog vs placebo over 210 days in a double-blind randomized trial. Also improved mood, sleep, fatigue, and breathlessness — larger confirmatory trials needed. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42708315/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Adding twice-daily scent training with 4 odorants boosted smell recovery more than medication and speech therapy alone. Smell test scores improved 7.9 vs 2.8 points in an observational study of post-COVID olfactory dysfunction. (n=75) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42709683/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Olfactory training for 12 weeks showed no significant improvement in smell scores or self-rated smell quality in severely affected patients (~30 months of symptoms). Prospective cohort study; quality of life remained below population norms. (n=25) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42704468/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

About 15% of US adults were prescribed an opioid, per nationally representative survey data. Significant pain interference linked to ~4x higher odds of opioid prescription; lower income nearly doubled the odds in US cross-sectional study. (n=877) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42700064/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

In patients with secondary adrenal insufficiency, higher renin levels linked to dysregulated immune and clotting proteins in blood. 20 altered proteins identified, mostly immune-related including complement and platelet factors, in exploratory proteomic study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42695868/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Young adults after mild illness showed impaired baroreflex-dependent heart and blood pressure reflexes vs matched controls. 47% had autonomic abnormalities, 35% met POTS criteria, and 12% had orthostatic hypotension in a case-control study. (n=68) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42688561/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Classifying patients by symptom frequency and severity outperformed models using symptom occurrence alone. Accuracy rose from 88.73% to 90.12% with composite scoring, requiring fewer predictive symptoms in a diagnostic modeling study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42494951/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Most never-hospitalised breathless patients showed no lung abnormalities on advanced xenon MRI vs controls, with >90% having normal function. However, ~13% showed minor gas transfer reductions in UK multicentre study. (n=196) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42682932/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Verbal fluency was the strongest predictor of smell loss severity, outranking respiratory symptoms and parosmia. Patients with reduced smell rated pleasant odors lower while unpleasant ratings stayed intact, 15–63 months post-infection. (n=144) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Olfactory dysfunction in post-acute COVID-19: clinical characterization, hedonic asymmetry, and machine-learningbased predictor identification - PubMed

Verbal fluency emerged as the strongest predictor of OD severity in long-term PASC patients. Beyond reduced olfactory sensitivity, hyposmic patients showed asymmetric hedonic impairment, pointing to differential involvement beyond peripheral olfactory loss.

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Accelerometry showed low overall physical activity, with under 1 min/day of vigorous activity. Comorbid chronic illness and greater fatigue linked to lower activity; higher functional capacity linked to more activity in cross-sectional analysis. (n=141) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42678932/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Ongoing symptoms linked to lower grip strength but not exercise capacity, after adjusting for age, sex, and activity level. Grip strength showed a moderate effect size, suggesting it may be a useful screening tool in post-infection follow-up (cross-sectional study). #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42366452/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

6-week supervised exercise produced no significant immune changes vs usual care after multiple-comparison correction in a crossover trial. Supports short-term immunological safety of moderate-intensity exercise in adults without post-exertional symptom worsening. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42665974/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Fibroblast-related tissue activity remained elevated in lungs and muscles 2+ years after moderate-to-severe infection, detected via PET imaging. Muscle uptake was highest in those who required mechanical ventilation. Pilot prospective observational study. (n=30) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42668009/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Gut bacteria transplanted from patients with symptoms persisting 2 years caused lung inflammation, intestinal inflammation, and anxiety in mice. Fecal transplant study in Chinese cohort also showed lower microbial diversity vs unexposed controls. (n=22) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42667585/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

After a brief maximal hand-grip task, PCC patients showed abnormal brain-to-muscle recovery compared to healthy controls. Smaller post-exercise dip in motor excitability and paradoxical shortening of inhibitory periods correlated with worse fatigue in obs study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42664889/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Early antibody responses to HHV-6 split into two distinct patterns linked to different outcomes. HHV-6 IgA tied to greater symptom burden, while HHV-6 IgG tied to lower symptom burden in NIH RECOVER multicohort observational study. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42660019/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

No association with preterm birth in pregnant individuals in a US multicenter cohort. In sensitivity analysis, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were 51% more common in the likely affected group (39% vs 26%). (n=603) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42659593/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Monocyte mitochondrial energy pathways normally linked to cognition were reversed in older adults with neurologic symptoms. Immune coordination between monocytes and T cells was also reduced in this observational study of adults over 55. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42653474/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

New cardiovascular diagnoses occurred in 10.9% of post-infection patients — most commonly arrhythmias, PE, and hypertension. Age over 65 carried ~64% higher odds. Those affected had more symptoms and worse function at 7 months in Italian cohort. (n=1,734) #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42642266/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Lung fibroblast activation protein linked to circulating markers of collagen III breakdown and collagen VI formation in patients with persistent symptoms. Observational study connecting lung fibroblast activity to extracellular matrix remodelling. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42639012/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

Most post-acute symptoms were no more common after SARS-CoV-2 than after other respiratory viral infections. Pulmonary embolism, fatigue, brain fog, abnormal breathing, and palpitations did show increased risk vs other viruses in systematic review. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42628715/

000

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Retinal scans revealed narrower arterioles and reduced venular dilation in patients vs recovered and never-infected controls in a case-control study. Those meeting ME/CFS criteria had the most pronounced changes; lower artery-to-vein ratio tracked with worse symptoms. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42625188/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Heart, kidney, and lung risks were higher vs recovered controls across all ages and sexes. Relative risks were disproportionately elevated in younger adults — especially young women for heart/kidney and young men for lung outcomes in matched retrospective cohort. #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42622238/

Long COVID Signal @longcovidsignal.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Flagellated gut bacteria expanded across patients with RA, ankylosing spondylitis, and IBD, sharing a common intestinal signature Clearing these bacteria with antibiotics suppressed body-wide inflammation in human cohorts and a mouse co-infection model #LongCovid

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42618450/