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Navigating the Challenges of Delayed Subdural Hemorrhage and COVID-19: A Case Report - Cureus

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The guidelines are more lenient than previous COVID-19 guidelines, which required students to isolate for five days after testing positive.

Author: weareiowa.com

Published: 10:27 PM CST February 24, 2024

Updated: 10:27 PM CST February 24, 2024

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The guidelines for quarantine after exposure to COVID-19 and isolation after a positive COVID-19 test or symptoms come from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Guidelines have changed periodically since the start of the pandemic.

After a known exposure to someone with COVID-19, you should wear a high-quality mask for 10 days when around others indoors and avoid people who are at high risk for severe illness. You should test for COVID-19 when you develop symptoms or after five days if you have no symptoms.

If you test positive for COVID-19, you should isolate for at least five full days after the start of symptoms or after a positive test (if you didn't have symptoms). People with more severe symptoms or whose symptoms are not improving need additional isolation time. Masking when indoors around others and avoiding people at higher risk of severe illness are needed until day 11.

This article will cover when to quarantine or isolate, ending and extending quarantine or isolation, and more.

sestovic / Getty Images

Although people commonly use the terms "quarantine" and "isolation" interchangeably, they have separate definitions, as follows:

The day you are exposed to someone with COVID-19 is day zero. Day one is the first full day after this exposure. You should quarantine even if you have been vaccinated against COVID-19.

You should wear a high-quality mask through day 10 after exposure when you are around others indoors (including at home). Avoid going to places where you can't wear a mask. You can still leave home and go into public places as long as you can wear a mask.

Monitor yourself for symptoms of COVID-19 and test if you develop symptoms. If you have no symptoms, on day six (five full days after exposure), test for COVID-19. If the test is positive, you will now need to isolate.

If the test is negative, continue to wear a mask through day 10, monitor yourself for symptoms, and test again if you develop any. You can get COVID-19 up to 10 days after exposure.

Symptoms of COVID-19 can present as early as two days and as late as 14 days after exposure to the virus.

Common symptoms include:

You might be contagious at any time from when you are exposed until you develop symptoms. You are most contagious with COVID-19 two days before and three days after symptoms develop.

You could be contagious for up to 10 days after symptoms start, regardless of whether symptoms are mild or severe.During this time, you will want to take steps to avoid exposing others to the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

If you test positive for COVID-19 or have symptoms of the illness, you should isolate yourself from other people for at least five days. The five-day requirement should be extended if you are seriously ill or your COVID symptoms have not improved after five days. Ask your healthcare provider how long you should isolate.

You might still be contagious after the five-day period, so you should continue masking through day 10 (until day 11) after symptoms develop or you have a positive test.

One study reported in the peer-reviewed medical journal JAMA Network Open analyzed data from a testing site during the January 2022 Omicron variant surge in San Francisco. The data found that many people with COVID-19 were still testing positive after five days.

When you isolate, you are separated from others, and your movement is restricted. With a positive COVID-19 test and/or symptoms, do the following:

People at higher risk include:

The CDC timeline for quarantine and isolation is based on when you are most likely to transmit the virus to others.

The timeline after exposure to COVID-19 is:

The timeline after a positive COVID-19 test or symptoms develop is:

The timeline if you had moderate or severe illness or have a weakened immune system is:

People who have asymptomatic COVID-19 have tested positive for the virus but do not develop symptoms even after the incubation periodthe time between when you are exposed until the time when symptoms present.

One 2021 JAMA Network Open research review found 40.5% of people with a confirmed COVID-19 infection were asymptomatic. People who test positive for COVID-19 but do not have symptoms can still transmit the virus to others.

The CDC recommends staying home and isolating for five full days even with asymptomatic COVID-19, but for some people, that may be a lot harder. If you test positive, check with your employer, school, or public health department for additional guidelines for asymptomatic people with COVID-19.

You can leave isolation after five full days after symptom onset. This is provided that any fever has resolved for at least 24 hours without fever-reducing medication and other symptoms are improving.

The CDC rule is that day zero is the first day you experience symptoms. If your day zero is Sunday, then Thursday is your day five. If you feel fine on Friday, you can venture out of your home to work or to run errands. But you should wear a high-quality mask for five additional days as you might still be contagious (through day 10).

Alternatively, if you have access to tests, you can stop wearing a mask if you test negative with two at-home COVID-19 tests taken at least 48 hours apart. In this case, you can be around others without a mask, even if it has not been 10 days.

People who become severely ill with COVID-19, especially those who are hospitalized or require breathing support, might need to isolate longer.If you have moderate to severe disease, you may need to isolate for up to 10 days. Some people with severe symptoms that last beyond 10 days may need to isolate even longer, up to 20 days.

This extended isolation period may also apply to those with compromised immune systems. The CDC recommends isolating for up to 20 days if you are moderately or severely immunocompromised. They also recommend a negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or antigen COVID test before resuming being around others.

Being immunocompromised means your immune system, which typically fights off pathogens, is not as strong as it should be, making you more likely to get sick with COVID-19 and be sick longer.

You may be immunocompromised due to a medical condition, such as an immunodeficiency disease or advanced human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), or because you take immunosuppressive drugs, including high-dose corticosteroids, biologics, or methotrexate).

If, after you have ended your isolation, COVID-19 symptoms recur or get worse, the CDC advises restarting your isolation at day zero. Contact your healthcare provider if you have questions about coming out of isolation or the need to extend isolation based on your unique health situation.

Most people who become sick with COVID-19 will have a mild illness and can recover at home. Their symptoms may last a few days, but most will feel better in about a week.

While you recover from COVID-19, you will want to avoid transmitting the virus to others. By isolating, you separate yourself from people in your home who are not sick.

When you isolate at home, spend most of your time in one room, staying away from other members of your household as much as you can. Use a separate bathroom, if possible.Do not share personal household items, including cups, utensils, bedding, and towels.

Consider taking steps to improve the ventilation in your home. You can do this by opening windows and using fans to direct air outside or into the home but not toward others. If you cannot open windows, use a portable air purifier.

If you have to share spaces with others in your household, limit your time in those areas and wear a face mask. Make sure your mask fits well and is comfortable. Your mask should be disposed of and replaced with a new one daily.

While isolating and recovering, monitor your symptoms. If you have severe symptoms, like shortness of breath and trouble breathing, call a healthcare provider immediately or head to your local emergency department.

If full isolation is impossible due to work or family commitments, isolate yourself as much as possible from others in your work area or home. Wear a well-fitting mask. Household members and coworkers should also wear masks when around you.

Use disinfecting wipes to wipe down high-touch services in your work area, including desk surfaces, computers, keyboards, telephones, and pens. Try to avoid common areas, such as a break room or a frequently used bathroom.

If you have been exposed to COVID-19, quarantining by wearing a high-quality mask when around others for 10 days is vital to avoid transmitting the virus. Even if you are up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccines and haven't developed symptoms, you can still transmit the virus to others. Monitor yourself and test for COVID-19 if you develop symptoms or on the fifth full day after exposure.

If you test positive for COVID-19 or develop symptoms, the CDC recommends isolating for five days and wearing a mask when around others for another five days. Isolation guidelines are to stay home, wear a mask when around others, and separate yourself from others in your household as much as possible.

Your first day of isolation is either the day symptoms start or the day you test positive for COVID-19 if you are asymptomatic. If you have severe symptoms, are hospitalized, or are immunocompromised, you may need to isolate for longer than 10 days. Your healthcare provider can best advise you when to isolate and for how long based on your unique health situation.

While isolating, keep an eye on your symptoms. If they become severe or you have breathing troubles, seek emergency medical care.

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How to Quarantine or Isolate With COVID-19: 5-Day Rule - Verywell Health

School districts want more time to spend COVID-19 relief aid for homeless-student programs, citing growing need and logistical challenges in meeting the September 2024 spending deadline.

Senators who first championed that aid$800 million for homeless children and youth included in the 2021 American Rescue Plan Actcirculated a letter to colleagues this week, rallying support to give districts an additional year to allocate that money.

District homeless liaisons have used the money to identify and locate homeless students, transport them to their original schools when their highly mobile families move into new attendance zones, and address the non-academic barriers that prevent them from attending or engaging in school.

Unfortunately, the number of students experiencing homelessness has grown significantly, with a 16 percent increase in the number of families in homeless shelters last year aloneand that number doesnt include the majority of homeless children and youth who move between couches, motels, and other locations, said a letter signed by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.; Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz. The simple fact is that child and youth homelessness is higher now, and the need is greater than prior to or during the pandemic.

The lawmakers rallied colleagues Feb. 22 to sign onto the letter, which urges the Senate Appropriations Committee to include the extension in any fiscal 2024 spending plans. Congress must negotiate a budget compromise or pass a stop-gap spending bill by March 8 to avoid a full government shutdown.

Without an extension, the cutoff for the targeted homeless-student aid will coincide with the deadline for schools to obligate general K-12 COVID-19 relief funding providing to schools. Superintendents have unsuccessfully pressed for more time to spend those funds, and the U.S. Department of Education has offered some limited flexibility .

Advocates for students experiencing homelessness said the targeted COVID aid helped more schools reach more students than they have in the past. The American Recovery Plan funding is about six times higher than what districts receive in a typical year through the federal McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program.

About 10,000 school districts receive the targeted COVID-19 aid, and about 6,000 of those districts dont typically qualify for ongoing McKinney-Vento funds because they dont meet criteria, including having a high enrollment of identified homeless students, according to SchoolHouse Connection, an organization that advocates for students experiencing homelessness.

In some places, [the targeted COVID aid] is making a huge difference, but it comes with this ticking clock of a spending deadline, said Barbara Duffield, the organizations executive director.

In a survey SchoolHouse Connection released Feb. 21, more than half of district homeless liaisons reported serving more homeless students in late 2023 than they had at the same point in the previous school year. The respondents attributed that increase to increased housing instability and an improved ability to identify homeless students, who may not realize they are eligible for services.

School programs use a more expansive definition of homelessness than the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, counting students who sleep on friends couches, in motels, and other temporary arrangements. Seventy-six percent of the 1.1 million students in the most recent federal data were doubled up with other families. As a result, schools must conduct thorough outreach programs to locate students who may be disconnected from school and to ensure families are aware of resources that may help boost their attendance.

Districts used the influx of additional federal funding to hire social workers to connect students and their families to community programs. They also used it to stock school food pantries, buy washers and dryers to allow these highly mobile students to do laundry at school, and provide new shoes for children who had outgrown their only pair.

But some districts werent aware of all of the acceptable uses for the temporary aid until recently, Duffield said. In September 2023, a year before the spending deadline, the Education Department issued new guidance to clarify that the relief funding could fund emergency motel stays; gas cards, bicycles, and car repairs to address transportation barriers; grocery store gift cards to allow families to buy food; and early childhood programming.

Additional time to draw down the remaining funds will give districts the flexibility to meet students needs throughout the next school year, Duffield said.

Schools need to have funds available to meet the most pressing needs when they arise, rather than rushing to meet a deadline, Duffield said.

The rest is here:

Schools Want More Time to Spend COVID-19 Aid for Homeless Students - Education Week

The POINT project seeks to develop innovative strategies for the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases that arise as complications during the post-acute phase of COVID-19.

The POINT project, a research initiative addressing the long-term health consequences of COVID-19, was launched on 1 January 2024. Designed to focus on the post-acute phase of the disease, which occurs four months or more after the infection, the project seeks to develop innovative strategies for the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases that arise as complications during this phase.

Despite the acute phase of COVID-19 being the primary focus of global healthcare systems, evidence suggests that the post-acute phase poses a significant risk for the emergence of non-communicable diseases affecting pulmonary, cardiovascular, and renal systems. With over 183 million reported cases in the EU and up to 70% of patients experiencing reduced organ function post-infection, there is a critical need to address these long-term impacts. The POINT project aims to mitigate the socio-economic costs associated with these health challenges by introducing advanced biomarkers, a virtual twin model for clinical support, and comprehensive guidelines for healthcare providers.

It is commonly believed that once you stop displaying the primary symptoms of an infectious disease, you are healthy and expected to promptly resume your job and societal duties with the same vigour as before falling ill. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has unveiled a different reality. We now understand that the effects of this disease can persist for many months beyond the acute phase, impacting not only immediate health but also worsening the risk of chronic non-communicable diseases. This realisation underscores the need for a more comprehensive approach to managing the aftermath of COVID-19 and other severe infectious diseases in general. With POINT we will give a better understanding of the post-acute phase of COVID-19 and develop tools and guidelines that will help minimize risk of long-term consequences following COVID-19 and other severe infections".

Claus Desler, POINT Coordinator from the Copenhagen University

"It is important for these endeavors to gain traction and advance scientific understanding," says Chiara Palazzetti, Project Manager Officer from Fondazione ICONS. "We will therefore support the project in sharing its results and we will engage with stakeholders such as physicians and general practitioners. The aim is to get the healthcare community to adopt the procedures and guidelines on a large scale for better patient outcomes."

POINT assembles an interdisciplinary team, leveraging the expertise of clinical, molecular, and behavioral scientists alongside computer scientists. The consortium will access extensive cohorts and biobanks, encompassing data from over 6 million Europeans, to drive their research. This collective effort is poised to deliver a transformative impact on how post-COVID health challenges are understood and managed.

The project is particularly significant as it addresses a gap in the current healthcare response to the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the post-acute phase which has, until now, been relatively underexplored.

By prioritizing the development of clinical guidelines and decision-support tools, POINT will provide crucial support to over 120,000 physicians and the broader healthcare value chain.

View original post here:

POINT project seeks to develop innovative strategies for tackling long-term COVID-19 health impact - News-Medical.Net

What initially was referred to as Paxlovid rebounda return of COVID symptoms or test positivity after starting a course of the antiviralis now more accurately referred to as COVID rebound, because rebound can happen regardless of whether someone takes antivirals.

Whats more, its likely not a phenomenon unique to COVID, says virologist Andy Pekosz, PhD, a professor in Molecular Microbiology and Immunology. What is unique to COVID is the technologyspecifically rapid antigen teststhat allows us to track the progress of an infection so closely.

Researchers are continuing to investigate why some people experience COVID rebound, whether people are contagious during this period, and the role antivirals like Paxlovid might play. But one thing is certain, says Amesh Adalja, MD, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security who specializes in infectious diseases and pandemic preparedness: The possibility that someone might experience mild rebound symptoms should not deter them from taking Paxlovid if they are at a higher risk for severe illness.

COVID rebound is typically described as a recurrence of signs or symptoms or a new positive viral test result after initial recovery from COVID-19, according to the CDC. The order of events generally looks like this: A person is infected with and has symptoms of COVID; their symptoms subside over the course of the infection, and they test negative for COVID on a home antigen test; their symptoms return, and they may test positive again on a home antigen test.

Rebound symptoms are generally mild, and no hospitalizations or deaths have occurred as a result of rebound, according to a December 2023 CDC report.

Researchers are still working to understand why rebound happens and how it varies from person to personwith some experiencing a return of symptoms and others only seeing evidence through antigen testing. But at a molecular level, the fact that rebound occurs is not surprising, says Andy Pekosz.

We think about an infection as starting as nothing, going up to a peak, and then going away, but in reality, your body is much more complicated than that, he says. Using more sensitive tools, virologists have seen that the amount of virus present in someone with COVID goes up and down over the course of an infection, causing different degrees of symptoms.

A CDC review of COVID rebound studies found no consistent association between treatment and rebound. Paxlovid does not directly cause symptoms to return; in fact, only about 1 in 5 people who take Paxlovid experience rebound, and many of those are asymptomatic.

Paxlovid is taken daily for five days, and its possible that the immune response is somewhat blunted during that period. The hypothesis is that after those five days, the drug pressure from Paxlovid is gone and whatever remnants of the virus are still present are able to cause symptoms again, Adalja says. We dont quite understand why it happens in some people and not others, but it likely has to do with the nuance of the immune response and how that's impacted by antivirals.

The risk of rebound should not preclude someone who's at high risk or severe disease from taking Paxlovid, and it definitely shouldnt preclude doctors from prescribing it. Taking Paxlovid clearly reduces the likelihood of an individual developing severe COVID, irrespective of COVID rebound, Pekosz emphasizes.

Yes. In fall 2020 and spring 2021before Paxlovid became availablePekosz and other virologists studied how infectiousness and viral load varied among individuals over the course of a COVID infection. Their results showed numerous instances of what we now describe as COVID rebound: a return of symptoms or positive antigen test.

These results werent unexpected, according to Pekosz. Many of us virologists assumed [rebound] was happening because we understand that these viruses come and go, they're not smooth curves in terms of your responses, he says.

Possiblybut Adalja explains that contagiousness is better determined by test positivity than symptoms. If a person experiences rebound symptoms but doesnt test positive on a home antigen test, they likely arent shedding enough virus to be infectious, he says. However, if they test positive on a home antigen test, that does likely correlate with contagiousness.

A faint line on a home antigen test is still a positive test result. The tests are validated to tell you yes or no to whether it detects viral material, Pekosz explains, not how contagious you are. A dark line does mean more viral load, he says, but theres no system that correlates different shades of red with level of contagiousness.

If you're testing positive following a previous negative test or following a full course of Paxlovid, that's where masking and distancing becomes important, Pekosz says. But again, only at the tail end of an infection, when youre feeling better and symptoms arent severe.

Its likely that rebound occurs with other viral infections, Pekosz explains. It probably happens with influenza, but we don't have the at-home tests to capture that, Pekosz says, adding that he hopes future availability of at-home flu tests will allow virologists to analyze flu cases like they have with COVID.

What we can do in terms of diagnosing ourselves with COVID and following the course of the disease is light-years ahead of what we can do for influenza, Pekosz says. Its a testament to the fact that we've done good science and gotten these tools in place to see these kinds of variations that we've never been able to see with other viruses or infections.

Aliza Rosen is a digital content strategist in the Office of External Affairs at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

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What to Know About COVID Rebound | Johns Hopkins | Bloomberg School of Public Health - Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

A global study has connected those who received COVID vaccines to an increased risk of some serious medical conditions, but one Loudoun County, Virginia, doctor says theres more to consider here.

A global study has connected those who received COVID vaccines to an increased risk of some serious medical conditions, but one Loudoun County, Virginia, doctor says theres more to consider here.

The study published by the Global COVID Vaccine Safety (GCoVS) Project looked at around 100 million people who were given COVID vaccines around the world and the number of certain medical conditions reported before and after those vaccinations.

Depending on the region of the world, different increases in medical conditions were noted in those taking a variety of vaccines.

The most noted increases in conditions of those vaccinated in the United States were of cardiovascular conditions in those who had taken mRNA shots by Pfizer and Moderna. Those conditions included inflammation of the heart muscle and of the thin sac covering the heart

But Dr. David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Health Department, said while all vaccines come with some risk of adverse reaction, in this case, all of the increases may not be because of the vaccinations.

COVID itself can cause the same infection, said Goodfriend. Its hard to know if its the vaccine thats resulting in an increased level of this, or it was just that we were having COVID.

Goodfriend said studies have also consistently shown the benefits of the COVID vaccines are higher than the potential risks.

I keep getting a COVID booster, he said, My family members get COVID boosters, because I think the risk of the infection by far outweighs any risk of the vaccine.

But he said it will take years for all the research data to come in. Because the COVID-19 vaccine was developed during a pandemic, the process was different from normal vaccine development.

Usually, when a vaccine is developed, there are years of clinical tests, and the recommended usage is altered as new information is learned during those trials.

In this case, while there were short clinical trials, the entire populace is essentially part of the extended study and there already been cases where the administration of a vaccine was altered to adjust to reactions being noted.

In real time, during COVID, when they started seeing an issue with one formulation of the vaccine they put that warning out to folks and were saying, Hey, were seeing heart conditions in young men who get this vaccine. Try to steer them away to a different product,' he said.

Now, with billions of doses administered, the research is getting much more powerful and sensitive at picking up even very rare side effects.

Goodfriend believes that over time, research will grow and define how COVID-19 is treated, and possibly see newly formulated annual vaccines, much like we currently do for flu shots.

As for how bad COVID has been this year, Goodfriend said we know that COVID is still deadly, but it will be a few more months before we know just how many people it impacted this year.

The good news, at least in Northern Virginia, is our hospital systems were not overwhelmed with COVID cases and were likely past the worst part of it for this winter, he said.

The study was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which provided $10 million for the study.

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New global study links COVID vaccines to slightly increased risk of heart problems - WTOP

Hi, its Bob in New York. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is considering revising its Covid isolation guidelines, amid a debate over whats the most practical advice for a Covid-weary world. But first...

Remember Covid-19? While the public largely moved on and tried its best to forget about the pandemic, the virus is still out there. Its highly contagious and continues to mutate. And it is still killing more people than influenza.

Thats the context for the debate over whether the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention should ease up on Covid isolation guidelines that advise people to isolate for at least five days after testing positive. Bloomberg News reported last week that the CDC hasnt yet decided whether to update its guidelines to allow for a shorter isolation period, after the Washington Post reported that such a change was in the works.

The CDCs Covid isolation guideline is more stringent than its recommendations for influenza, which say you should stay home at least 24 hours after fever is gone. As a practical matter, this mismatch can create a disincentive for people with mild symptoms to get tested for Covid.

See the article here:

CDC Covid Isolation Guidelines May Discourage Testing - Bloomberg

People who received the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines for COVID-19 were more likely to come down with myocarditis or pericarditis, which are heart-related inflammations, according to a study involving 99 million people who received vaccine.

For example, people were 6.1 times more likely to come down with myocarditis following their second dose of Moderna vaccine. Higher than expected rates of myocarditis also occurred among people who received the Pfizer vaccine, according to the study which can be read in full in the journal Vaccine.

The study, which also looked at side effects among people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine, further found elevated risks of side effects including Guillain-Barre syndrome, a disease of the immune system, and blood clots in the brain.

Dr. Marc Siegel of NYU Langone Medical Center told Fox News, This study does not really change anything; it just provides much further evidence of what we already know.

Siegel and other experts further said the risks of those conditions and others including death are still far higher following an actual COVID-19 infection. Seigel, who is a regular Fox News contributor, called the side effects rare and said other studies show that the vaccine decreases the risk of myocarditis from COVID itself dramatically.

Forbes quoted biotech CEO Jacob Glanville as saying, The odds of all of these adverse events is still much, much higher when infected with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), so getting vaccinated is still by far the safer choice.

The study, which was funded in part by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, looked at people in eight countries including Canada, but not the United States.

Previous studies have found the same side effects, and experts have noted that nearly everyone who experiences conditions such as myocarditis recovers quickly.

The new study, done by the Global Vaccine Network, which is part of the World Health Organization, focused on side effects that showed up within about two months of a vaccine dose. It contained no information regarding severity of illness, recovery time or deaths.

Doctors and the U.S. government have long cited a slight risk of myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination, with the risk highest among young men.

One study involved members of the U.S. military who received a total of 2.8 million doses. Twenty-three men came down with myocarditis, with most coming after their second dose. In most cases symptoms went away within a week; none died.

All told, 13.53 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given around the world, with about 70% of people having received at least one. That includes 677 doses million in the United States as of May 2023, and 28 million in Pennsylvania.

Originally posted here:

Myocarditis, other rare COVID-19 vaccine risks confirmed by study - PennLive

A lot of viral illnesses can completely wipe you out, and, as weve learned throughout the pandemic, COVID-19 is no exception. But as conversations about the impact of long COVID continue to swirl, scientists are exploring just how common chronic fatigue might be after a bout with the virus.

Turns out, the risk is higher than you might think, according to a new study from the CDC published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases. Researchers analyzed the electronic records of 4,589 adults who received health care in the state of Washington and were diagnosed with COVID between February 2020 and February 2021 (meaning they were infected with earlier strains of SARS-CoV-2). They compared them to the records of people who didnt test positive for the virus during the same period (those with a suspected case or a history of COVID were excluded from this control group). On average, the researchers followed up with people for about a year post-infection.

The results are sobering: People who were sick with COVID had a 68% higher risk of developing incident fatigue, which refers to intense tiredness that develops after whats considered enough time to be recovered or the post-acute period. (There is no single definition for this, but the National Institutes of Health notes that COVIDs post-acute period has generally been defined as three weeks after symptoms first hit.)

The study found that folks in the COVID group were also 4.3 times more likely to develop chronic fatigueenduring exhaustion, in simplest termsthan those in the control group. The researchers noted that, in past studies, people who had post-COVID fatigue experienced symptoms that were similar to the profound fatigue thats signature to myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), a serious and potentially disabling condition that is often, but not always, triggered by an infection.

In general, women and people with certain underlying conditions, like diabetes or COPD, were hit by fatigue the hardest. Physicians should be aware that fatigue might occur or be newly recognized [more than a year] after acute COVID-19, the study authors concluded.

Long COVID is still a bit of a mystery: Theres a lot that experts dont understand about the condition, including why it develops in the first place.

But there are some theories: In people with long COVID, the immune response to the virus may cause direct or indirect damage that disrupts other body functions, senior study author Quan Vu, MD, an epidemiologist at the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases at the CDC, tells SELF. (This would help to explain its vast and ever-growing list of potential symptoms.)

Another biggie: We believe, in long COVID, that many people have this ongoing inflammatory response, Thomas Russo, MD, professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York, tells SELF.

When your immune system reacts to a possible threatin this case, an infectionit uses an army of specialized cells and proteins to fend off whatevers making you sick. With long COVID, its as though the army keeps fighting even though it should go back to the barracks, William Schaffner, MD, an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, tells SELF. That inflammation, experts believe, continues to smolder for a long period of time, he explains, triggering a slew of potential symptoms, including persistent fatigue.

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People Who Have Had COVID Face a Much Higher Risk of Chronic Fatigue - Self