June 2025 Newsletter

An international team of researchers found a genetic link to long-term symptoms after COVID-19. The identified gene variant is located close to the FOXP4 gene, which is known to affect lung function and the development of lung disease. It was found that this gene variant increases the risk of long COVID by about 60%.

“Our findings suggest that impaired lung function plays a key role in developing long COVID. While this gene variant significantly increases risk, it’s important to recognize it as just one part of a much larger puzzle” says Hugo Seberg, one of the lead researchers of the study.”

Genetic studies can provide insights into diseases risk factors and are particularly powerful where the exact mechanisms remain unclear, like long COVID.

Long COVID investigators are looking inside the bodies of people experiencing long COVID. By examining small amounts of tissue, blood and saliva — biosamples — investigators called pathobiologists can see what is happening in an individual’s internal organs. Pathobiologists are studying the biological mechanisms in the internal organs of long COVID patients, such as the brain and lungs, to better understand long COVID, inform future clinical trials and search for treatments.

Researchers investigated whether employees with long COVID experience higher missed days in the workplace than those without the condition. Their objective was to provide insights into the potential impact of long COVID on the labor market.
 
The prevalence of long COVID in the full-time employed study population was 7%, with women having higher prevalence than men. The risk of long COVID was also much higher among employees with preexisting conditions. The absenteeism rate among employees with long COVID was, on average, eight days within a calendar year. Employees without long COVID had only four missed days within a calendar year.
 
Individuals with long COVID histories often experience difficulties resuming work or maintaining their pre-pandemic productivity at the workplace. Many may need to reduce or adjust their workload, resulting in reduced income, job loss, and financial hardship. Researchers suggest remote work facilities, flexible work schedules, or shorter workdays as practical arrangements for employees experiencing limitations due to long COVID.

A new study shows that recovery from COVID-19 might not be as straightforward as most of us now expect. It was found that, on average, it takes many people up to 3 months to return to good physical health after a COVID-19 infection, and nine months to recover from poor mental well-being. These findings point to the need for a deeper understanding of how COVID-19 infections affect the body, physically and mentally, in the short term and long term.

Lauren Wisk, PhD, assistant professor in the division of general internal medicine and health services research at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles, examined data from people who had COVID-19 at eight different health facilities. Wisk and her team asked people to self-report if they have experienced long COVID. It was determined that it took people far longer to regain their mental well-being than it did their physical health.

“We need to be thinking about a longer road to recovery for people, because even if someone recovers physically from their symptoms, it might not end there for them,” says Wisk.

The University at Buffalo is conducting a clinical trial to study possible treatments for adults who have an autonomic nervous system disorder, called Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), related to long COVID.

RECOVER-AUTONOMIC is a trial focused on automatic dysfunction symptoms related to long COVID, such as fast heart rate, dizziness, and fatigue. These symptoms are related to damage to nerves that are part of the autonomic nervous system, which controls body functions like heartbeat and blood pressure.

If you have had COVID, and have 1 or more of the following symptoms when sitting or lying down, you may be eligible to participate:

• fast heart rate
• dizziness
• fatigue

Contact Catherine Wrona at (716) 888-4713 / wrona@buffalo.edu if you are interested in participating in RECOVER-AUTONOMIC.

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If you had COVID-19 and would like to participate, begin filling out the questionnaire.

If you have already participated in the Long COVID Connection, feel free to share with others who may be interested.

Contact us: (716) 382 - 1808 / ubcov@buffalo.edu