Madrid hospitals investigate persistent Covid

Internal Medicine Services Infanta Leonor and 12 de Octubre University Hospitalsin collaboration with the Faculty of Physical Therapy of the Rey Juan Carlos University, are conducting two studies that provide information on the pathogenesis and possible treatment options for patients with persistent Covid.

The first study, called “Viper” and recently published in the infectious disease journal Journal of Medical Virology, analyzes the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in biological samples from patients with persistent Covid compared to controls.

This case-control study is unique in that it included patients with a long period of symptoms after the initial infection (an average of two years) and a control group of patients who remained asymptomatic after acute Covid disease.– explained Infanta Leonor.

Specifically, I tested plasma, urine, and stool samples from 112 patients for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 virus persistence, a possible explanation for the long-term symptoms of persistent Covid. However, the results did not reveal the presence of the virus in any of the samples, ruling out this avenue for answering the cause of this disease and, in turn, offering a simple and accessible diagnostic test for these patients.

Except, If positive results were obtained, the door would open for new clinical trials of antiviral drugs.

Antiviral treatment

A second study, published in the journal Viruses, analysed the impact of treatment with the antiviral drug Remdesivir in 216 patients hospitalised with acute Covid on the subsequent development of symptoms compatible with Long Covid.

The study shows positive results indicating a protective effect of antiviral treatment in the acute phase of the disease, thus supporting one of the hypotheses indicating that reducing the viral load during the acute course of Covid may reduce the risk of persistent symptoms later on.

These projects were made possible by close cooperation between research centres and the support of patient associations.

Moreover, previous collaborations between researchers from these studies have resulted in more than 25 International Articles on Resistant Covidconsidering epidemiological factors, disease evolution and more specific aspects such as the impact of antiviral drugs.