LongCovid: Can it be avoided?

There is a simple point that people miss with Long covid.

First a definition. Mine has two parts.

Long covid is a collection of symptoms and problems after covid (1) beyond a similar level of illness from a different respiratory virus. Prolonged convalescence has always happened for some people after a respiratory virus, particularly among those who wind up in the intensive care unit, but long covid implies there is something unique to this virus. And long covid are these signs and symptoms that occur beyond comparable illness from other virus, (2) when you test people equally. If you do more scans, you will find more abnormalities, so long covid must be findings beyond the equivalent level of surveillance post (other) respiratory infection.

If we accept this 2 part definition, we must concede that the current long-covid literature is in its infancy. We shall someday see how much long covid fits. Perhaps all we know with confidence at this moment is that anosmia is part of this.

Now let me turn to a new argument : some people are now saying, 'even though I am vaccinated and boosted, I am still taking precautions because of long covid’. How should we parse this?

At this point it is clear that every single person who lives long enough will get COVID19. UK seroprevalence is past 90% at some ages. In so far as long covid is an issue, we will all eventually have to deal with it. In so far as current studies have exaggerated its frequency due to limited controls, we will all be spared.

Yet I struggle to see how the existence of long covid changes the personal calculation of what events you wish to attend. Because all roads lead to Rome. No matter what you choose, you will still get covid, and might still have what is called ‘long covid’. In the meantime, you will miss out on things— like weddings, parties, restaurants, bars, social gatherings— and all the other things that make us human. Is this worth it to you? Only you can decide, but avoiding COVID indefinitely is not an option.

Long covid still requires rigorous study, and that means controls. But if we are all going to get COVID in the near term, and that is likely, then I don’t see how the existence of long covid changes your personal risk calculation.