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Is this what is behind the long Covid? People with the disease have “micro blood clots” which can prevent oxygen from circulating properly in the body.
- The “long-haul” have a large amount of inflammatory molecules trapped in the blood
- These blockages have the potential to disrupt the body’s ability to distribute oxygen.
- This could explain the most common symptoms of Covid, such as fatigue and headaches
Long Covid could be caused by an overload of tiny clots “trapped” in people’s blood weeks after clearing the initial infection, scientists say.
The small study found that patients who are “long haul” have a large amount of inflammatory molecules trapped in their bloodstream.
These blockages have the potential to disrupt the body’s ability to distribute oxygen and vital nutrients, they said.
This could explain the most common symptoms of Covid for a long time, such as fatigue, headaches and difficulty breathing.
The South African researcher who made the discovery said the micro-clots could be the cause of a long Covid or one of many contributing factors.
A scientist has found that long Covid patients have microblood clots months after the initial infection. On the left is a picture of healthy blood plasma (blood plasma is the largest type of fluid that makes up blood, accounting for 55% of the total) and on the right is a picture of one of the microclots found in the blood. The material contained in the two samples was demonstrated using fluorescent materials for analysis.
South African researcher who made the discovery said micro clots could be the cause of a long Covid or one of many contributing factors (file)
The new discovery came from Professor Resia Pretorius of the Department of Physiological Sciences at Stellenbosch University.
Professor Pretorius compared blood taken from 11 people with long Covid and 13 healthy individuals.
“We have found high levels of various inflammatory molecules trapped in micro-clots present in the blood of individuals with long Covid,” she said.
“Some of the trapped molecules contain clotting proteins such as fibrinogen, as well as alpha (2) -antiplasmin.”
Fibrinogen is a protein found in the blood and helps the body make clots to stop bleeding.
Alpha (2) -antiplasmin is a molecule that helps prevent the breakdown of blood clots.
Under normal conditions, the body maintains a balance between coagulant and anticoagulant material to help the body reduce blood loss after injury.
It also prevents the clots from getting too big and restricting the flow of oxygen.
Professor Pretorius said that high amounts of blocked alpha (2) -antiplasmin in the blood means the body’s ability to break down clots is drastically reduced.
What causes Covid for a long time has confused scientists since the phenomenon was observed.
But other recent studies have also found evidence that the body’s coagulation system may be involved.
A study from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland showed that clotting markers were elevated in people with Covid months long after their initial infection.
And Covid itself has been linked to bleeding disorders during the initial infection which in some cases can be fatal.
Data from the Office of National Statistics in August suggests that nearly 400,000 people in the UK have suffered from long-term Covid for more than a year.
Long Covid is an umbrella term for symptoms that persist for more than a month and are poorly understood.
Professor Pretorius said more research is needed to confirm his findings, with a larger sample.
She also recommended more research into the type of treatment needed to support the coagulation system of Covid patients over the long term.
His findings were published in the medical journal Cardiovascular Diabetology.
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