Covid-19 Traces Found In Internal Organs Of Patients Even After 230 Days

The worst thing about Covid-19 mutation is that our knowledge about the virus is constantly racing against it. With Delta, new symptoms emerged. With Omicron, the transmission is much higher.

What scientists have managed to establish so far is that Long Covid is silently changing the lives of millions who have recovered from one of the variants of coronavirus. From loss of smell and taste to brain fog, recovered patients are experiencing prolonged symptoms of Covid-19.

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Viral persistence in Covid-19 patients

Now, it appears that coronavirus can persist in human organs for months after infection. The most worrying part is that this is true even for mild and asymptomatic cases. Traces of Covid-19 continue to persist in the heart, lymph nodes, eyes, nerves, and the brain of those infected with one of the Covid variants.

The research was posted on Research Square on December 20 and is currently awaiting peer review.

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Given its respiratory nature, the virus mostly attacks one's lungs. But this study highlights how its traces continue to linger in other parts, "particularly in the brain".

To track traces of Covid-19, scientists performed autopsies on 44 patients who succumbed to Covid-19 to understand how the virus distributed and multiplied in the human body.

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"SARS-CoV-2 is widely distributed, even among patients who died with asymptomatic to mild COVID-19, and that virus replication is present in multiple extrapulmonary tissues early in infection," the abstract states, suggesting how far-reaching the virus is among human bodies.

Also read: ICMR Designs Fast & Accurate Omicron Covid Detection Kit, Shares With Manufacturers

In fact, the researchers found traces of Covid-19 in the brains of people about 230 days after they developed symptoms - suggesting that Long Covid can actually be very very long!

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Their conclusion? That Covid-19 "causes systemic infection and can persist in the body for months."

Are you one of the unfortunate ones who have experienced long-term symptoms of Covid-19? Share your story with us in the comments below. For more in the world of tech and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.

Citation

SARS-CoV-2 infection and persistence throughout the human body and brain. (2021, December 20). Research Square.