UT Study Links Covid-19 to Dormant Virus Reactivation in Nearly 50% of 1,100 Patients
Updated
Updated · Futura · Aug 24
UT Study Links Covid-19 to Dormant Virus Reactivation in Nearly 50% of 1,100 Patients
3 articles · Updated · Futura · Aug 24
Summary
Nearly half of about 1,100 hospitalized Covid-19 patients had at least one dormant virus reactivate, a University of Texas study found, including in people previously considered immunologically healthy.
The Nature paper linked those reactivations—covering viruses such as Epstein-Barr and other herpesviruses—to more severe illness, longer hospital stays, serious complications and deaths.
Lead researcher Esther Melamed said existing tests can detect several of the chronic viruses and some herpesviruses already have antiviral treatments, setting up trials on whether treating reactivation improves acute or long-Covid outcomes.
About 400 million people worldwide are estimated to have long Covid, but the study stopped short of proving causation and relied on records from unvaccinated patients infected mostly early in the pandemic, leaving uncertainty about current variants.