Bridging Gaps in Long COVID Therapy: A Review

Area of Science:

• Medical Research
• Public Health
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Long COVID-19 (LC) is a post-acute SARS-CoV-2 infection characterized by persistent fatigue, dyspnea, and cognitive impairment.
• LC poses significant global health challenges, impacting patients' quality of life and functional capacity.
• Pathophysiology, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of LC remain areas with considerable inconsistencies and research gaps.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and address knowledge gaps in Long COVID-19 management.
• To focus on therapeutic strategies, including non-pharmacological, pharmacological, experimental, and innovative approaches.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and guide future research for improved patient outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive online literature search across PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library.
• Utilized keywords: "long COVID," "pharmacological options," "non-pharmacological options," "innovative strategies," "experimental," and "quality of life (QOL)."
• Extracted and synthesized data to categorize therapeutic approaches, critically analyzing their mechanisms, indications, outcomes, and limitations.

Main Results:

• Pooled prevalence of Long COVID-19 was 42%, with symptom duration from 3 months to 2 years.
• Key risk factors identified include female sex, unvaccinated status, and pre-existing comorbidities.
• Diagnosis of LC is challenging due to a lack of standardized diagnostic criteria and reliable biomarkers.

Conclusions:

• Non-pharmacological strategies demonstrated varied efficacy, though limited by small sample sizes in reported studies.
• Pharmacological agents show potential but require further clinical validation.
• Experimental and innovative therapeutic strategies necessitate longer-term studies and robust validation to confirm efficacy and safety.