COVID-19 has not been easy to have in the first place and the long-term consequences termed ‘Long-COVID’ seems even direr. Many people experience systemic symptoms for many months after their initial infection. Unfortunately, many aspects of ‘Long-COVID’ remains a mystery. Several questions like what exactly is ‘Long-COVID’, how prevalent it is, how to differentiate ‘Long-COVID’ from other illnesses, does anything predispose to ‘Long-COVID’, what are the odds of getting ‘Long-COVID’ from the first infection vs. breakthrough infection, are there any medications for it, are children also impacted, does it have to do anything with vaccination status, are there any surprising symptoms, what to do if you suspect having ‘Long-COVID’ etc. are still unanswered.
Much research is ongoing with hopes for better clarity in the near future. Here we present a first-hand perspective on the mystery of ‘Long-COVID’: brain fog, fatigue, and even sexual dysfunction from two Duke pulmonologists heavily involved with COVID-19 research.