Long Covid Causes Changes in Body That Make Exercise Debilitating – Study

A recent study published in Nature Communications focused on 25 patients with long COVID who reported persistent malaise after exercising, comparing them with 21 individuals who had fully recovered from COVID. All were previously healthy and of working age, none having been hospitalized due to COVID. During a short bicycle exercise, blood samples and muscle biopsies were collected.

On average, long COVIDpatients showed lower exercise capacity. Muscle biopsies revealed more white fibers in these patients, with fewer mitochondria and capillaries, explaining reduced power production. Signs also pointed to less effective mitochondria in long COVID patients, shedding light on their lower exercise capacity. Read more from The Guardian here.