Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Jan 01, 2026 1 hour, 57 minutes ago
Medical News: A lingering mystery after COVID-19
For millions of people worldwide, recovering from COVID does not always mean returning to normal health. Many continue to suffer months or even years later from what is now called post COVID condition or long COVID. One of the biggest unanswered questions has been why symptoms such as breathlessness, fatigue and pain persist long after the virus has gone.
Long COVID patients may carry hidden inflammation for up to 18 months after infection
A major international study has now shed light on one possible explanation. Researchers found that a silent and ongoing form of inflammation may continue in the body for up to 18 months after the initial infection, especially in people with breathing related symptoms.
Who carried out the research
The study was conducted by scientists from the University of Verona in Italy, the University of Bonn and the Bonn Center for Mathematical Life Sciences in Germany, Université Paris Cité and INSERM in France, Hospital Universitario Virgen Macarena and the University of Sevilla in Spain, University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands, the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina, and several other collaborating institutions across Europe and South America.
Inside the study
The research followed 4,587 people who had confirmed COVID infections between 2020 and 2023. These participants came from five countries and were tracked for up to 18 months. Blood tests were taken during the initial infection and again at 6, 12 and 18 months later.
Patients were grouped based on their main long COVID symptoms. These included breathing problems, chronic fatigue, chronic pain and neurosensory issues such as smell or nerve disturbances.
What the blood tests revealed
One simple blood marker stood out. C reactive protein or CRP, which doctors commonly use to detect inflammation, remained slightly but consistently raised in people with long COVID. This was especially true for those with ongoing respiratory symptoms.
Importantly, CRP levels stayed above what is considered normal, but not high enough to suggest an infection. Instead, they fell into a range doctors associate with low grade inflammation. This type of inflammation is subtle, long lasting and often difficult to detect without testing.
The study also showed that people who had more severe COVID initially were more likely to have higher CRP, ferritin and LDH levels months later. However, abnormal blood results during the early infection did not predict who would develop long COVID.
Why this matters for patients
These findings suggest that long COVID, particularly breathing related forms, may be driven by a slow burning inflammatory process rather than ongoing infection. This
Medical News report highlights how a routine blood test could help doctors better understand and monitor long COVID in everyday
clinical settings.
What the researchers concluded
The researchers concluded that persistent low-grade inflammation appears to play a key role in post COVID condition, especially in patients with long lasting respiratory symptoms. They emphasized that this inflammation can continue quietly for over a year, even when standard medical tests appear mostly normal. Recognizing this pattern could help guide future treatments, including trials of anti-inflammatory therapies and more personalized care approaches for long COVID patients.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed journal: Biomedicines
https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9059/14/1/83
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Read Also:
https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/long-covid
https://www.thailandmedical.news/articles/coronavirus
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