A staggering 400 million people worldwide are living with long COVID-19, according to groundbreaking research published in Nature Medicine.
The long-term economic repercussions are equally significant, with an estimated annual cost of around $1 trillion—approximately 1 percent of the global economy. These costs arise from increased healthcare services and the inability of patients to return to work.
Authored by Ziyad Al-Aly, chief of research and development at the VA St. Louis Health Care System and a clinical epidemiologist at Washington University in St. Louis, the study aims to consolidate four years’ worth of knowledge on long COVID-19 and its global impact.
Al-Aly collaborated with other leading long COVID-19 researchers and three leaders from the Patient-Led Research Collaborative, an organization comprised of long COVID-19 patients who are also professional researchers.
The research reveals that approximately 6 percent of adults globally have experienced long COVID-19. A significant number of these individuals have yet to fully recover, and effective treatment remains one of the most pressing challenges.
The study not only highlights the pervasive and enduring effects of long COVID-19 but also provides a comprehensive roadmap for future policy and research priorities to address this ongoing pandemic issue.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
