Sussex hospital trust to run two-year study into the cause, effect and treatment of long Covid

Patients in Sussex suffering from long Covid are among the first in the world to take part in a study looking into the longterm cognitive effects of the illness and how to treat it.

The study is one of 15 across the UK, backed by nearly £20million of government funding, which will fund researchers to investigate different aspects of long Covid, ranging from new diagnostic tests through to improvement of clinical services.

The latest research shows that a significant proportion of people continue to experience chronic symptoms many months after infection.

Dr Dennis Chan is principal research fellow at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, and also a consultant neurologist at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (which covers hospitals in Chichester, Worthing, Brighton and Haywards Heath). He is leading the £1.2million study which will research how long Covid affects the cognitive functions of the brain.

He and his team will work with patients with long Covid seen in his Cognitive Disorders Clinic, which is based at the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath. Other long Covid sufferers will be recruited to take part in the trial.

Dr Chan said: “Nearly 90 per cent of people who experience long Covid have problems with memory, attention or other cognitive functions – symptoms known colloquially as ‘brain fog’.

“We have to understand why people are affected in the ways they are, we need to identify better the nature of the cognitive problems then find therapies which will help people return to normal daily activities.

“People are familiar with the term ‘brain fog’ when it comes to long Covid. But let’s be specific. Brain fog is referring to cognitive impairment and this is increasingly recognised as a major component of long Covid. Its occurrence impacts quality of life and has major consequences for affected people, their families and the wider economy given people’s difficulty in returning to work.”

The study will first determine which elements of brain function are most affected in people with long Covid. The relationship between brain function and other symptoms of long Covid, such as fatigue and anxiety, will be explored, and MRI scanning will be used to identify the affected underlying brain networks.

The researchers will then develop and test a new rehabilitation strategy to help people recover from the cognitive aspects of long Covid and return to normal life and working ability. At the end of the study a freely available Covid-19 Cognitive Recovery Guide will be produced which will help clinicians deliver a rehabilitation programme that is tailored to meet each individual’s specific needs.

There will be 200 people taking part in the study, which has already begun.

The results should be known in two years.