Researchers probe link between ME/CFS and Long Covid

DESPITE testing negative and being told they’re fine, millions of people recovering from infections like Covid-19, influenza and glandular fever are left battling crippling fatigue, brain fog, joint pain, gut issues and a strange crash after any physical effort — a pattern that’s becoming too common to ignore.

- TRACY-LYNN RUITERS

These symptoms are medically known as myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).

Both the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officially classify ME/CFS as a brain disorder and post-viral fatigue syndrome.

Now, researchers from Stellenbosch University believe they may have found a common underlying factor linking ME/CFS and Long Covid: zombie-like cells hiding in our blood vessels.

Dr Massimo Nunes, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Stellenbosch University, explained: “Uncovering how ME/CFS and Long Covid originate and evolve over time is essential to move beyond symptom management toward disease-modifying therapies.”