Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study: Neurological Impact of Covid Persists
NBC News: Brain Fog, Other Long Covid Symptoms Can Last More Than A Year, Study Finds
The devastating neurological effects of long Covid can persist for more than a year, research published Tuesday finds — even as other symptoms abate. The study, published in the journal Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology, is the longest follow-up study of the neurological symptoms among long Covid patients who were never hospitalized for Covid. (Sullivan and Edwards, 5/24)
CIDRAP: COVID-Related Thyroiditis Still Detectable 1 Year Later In Some Patients
While COVID-19–related thyroid inflammation usually resolves shortly after the acute illness, about half of participants in a study presented today at the 24th European Congress of Endocrinology still had thyroid abnormalities a year later. The congress is being held May 21 to 24 in Milan, Italy. (5/23)
Arizona Republic: Epstein-Barr Virus, MS Link May Give Clues To Long COVID Cause
Dr. Janko Nikolich-Žugich, the head of the immunobiology department at the University of Arizona and co-director of the Arizona Center on Aging, said he and other researchers are interested in examining the relationship between long COVID and latent viruses because it is “probably the interplay between the host and the viruses that will determine why one person got (long COVID) and the other person just sailed through,” he said. He is part of a team that recently received a $9.2 million grant to study long COVID. But uncovering temporal and causal connections between latent viruses and long COVID could take a while. That’s why scientists are looking to existing knowledge, like the recently-confirmed connection between EBV and MS, for a glimpse of the future. (Walling, 5/23)
In news about the spread of covid —
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Summer COVID-19 Outbreak Begins To Take Hold In Ga. But Case Numbers Misleading
COVID-19 is beginning to spread more rapidly in Georgia, but health experts warn the cases we know about are just the tip of the iceberg. Georgia’s confirmed cases have more than quadrupled over the past two months, spurred by the emergence of several omicron subvariants that are causing outbreaks in other parts of the U.S. The seven-day rolling average of new COVID cases in Georgia increased to nearly 1,200 on May 9, which is the most up-to-date confirmed case data from the Georgia Department of Public Health. Less than two months ago, the rolling average was about 250 daily cases of COVID. (Hansen, 5/24)
CIDRAP: Kids' COVID Syndrome—MIS-C—Less Severe In Omicron
COVID-19–related multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) was milder amid the Omicron variant surge than during the Alpha and Delta waves in Israel, concludes a research letter published late last week in JAMA. ... Of the 171 MIS-C patients, 59 (34.5%) were diagnosed during the Alpha wave, while 79 (46.2%) were identified during Delta, and 33 (19.3%) amid Omicron. Median patient age was 8 years, and 55% were boys. (Van Beusekom, 5/23)
Stat: Reports Of ‘Paxlovid Rebound’ Have Covid Experts Looking For Theories
As he was treating some of the nation’s first coronavirus patients, Andre Kalil noticed something unusual about the new virus: Patients didn’t always progress linearly. They’d get better, then worse. Then sometimes better again. Initially, most researchers figured these undulating symptoms were collateral damage, as a riled-up immune system kept firing long after most of the virus was gone. Sometimes, though, Kalil could swab the lungs of a patient in the ICU and find virus still replicating weeks after they were admitted. Often, the amount of virus bounced up and down by the day. (Mast, 5/24)
In updates from Capitol Hill —
The Hill: Merkley Tests COVID-19 Positive, A Complication In 50-50 Senate
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) said Monday that he had tested positive for COVID-19, an announcement that could throw a wrench in Democrats’ agenda this week in an evenly divided Senate. (Weixel, 5/23)
The Washington Examiner: Capitol Group Tours Set To Resume After Long COVID-19 Hiatus
The Capitol is entering the second phase of its reopening plan next week after the House sergeant-at-arms declared the coronavirus pandemic had abated enough to allow more outside tour groups. The guidelines will begin next week on May 30, according to a Monday announcement from Sergeant-at-Arms William Walker. The first phase began in March shortly after Capitol authorities lifted the mask mandate. (Aabram, 5/23)
