Body Politic has published an important open letter to the @NIH@NIHDirector urging the prioritization of #LongCOVID research that builds off prior research into #MECFS and related conditions.
In December, Congress provided $1.15 billion over 4 years for @NIH to “support research into the prolonged health consequences of #COVID19”. With many newcomers to the field there’s cause for concern that experienced #MECFS researchers may be overlooked. nih.gov/about-nih/who-…
#LongCovid and #MECFS have much in common and are increasingly joining forces to drive change that might lead to diagnostics, treatments, and a cure.
As much as we lament lack of funding that has substantially delayed scientific progress in #MECFS, as Dr. Klimas @ngklimas put it, “but by God we've been doing it anyway and there's just a lot of work [to build off of]” over recent decades that may be applicable to #LongCOVID.
We’re used to hearing the framing that #MECFS “remains a mystery”, but in fact much has already been discovered thanks to intrepid researchers and patient-funded research. There are many hot leads to pursue.
Despite enormous burden on patients and society, chronic post-viral conditions like #MECFS have been neglected for decades and we must now make up for lost time. (cc @NINDSdirector)
So for the sake of #LongCOVID, #MECFS and related conditions we cannot waste our biggest chance at a breakthrough reinventing the wheel.
Looking ahead, #LongCOVID#MECFS and related conditions must band together to drive change. 💪
It has been a great disappointment to some psychiatrists that post-viral #MECFS hasn’t turned out to be psychiatric. This hasn’t stopped them from attempting to stake their claim over #LongCovid (or ME/CFS for that matter) to the detriment of biomedical research & patient care.
1/ At a recent @MEActNet briefing, Dr. Anthony Komaroff confirmed his earlier prediction that we had reason to expect some w/ COVID-19 would develop a debilitating chronic fatigue syndrome w/ symptoms similar to post-viral #MECFS (focusing on #LongCovid cases w/o organ damage).
2/ Komaroff alluded to abnormalities found in the brain in #MECFS, referencing theory of chronic low-grade activation of immune system in the brain — requires validation. Called for #LongCovid studies to build off past ME/CFS findings, plus research including both patient groups.
3/ Komaroff proposes that #MECFS is an illness “with a final common pathway that can be triggered by different things".