Women who have mild inflammation in the acute stages of Covid-19 infection may be more likely to experience a particular set of long Covid symptoms, according to new research. Researchers at the Universities of York and Hull in the US, showed that women who survived severe Covid in the first wave of infection in 2019 were more likely to experience the muscle ache, low mood and anxiety that characterises long Covid if their blood showed signs of inflammation while they battled the disease.

"These findings show how long Covid can be a mixed condition with physical and mental health symptoms, and how inflammation in the acute phase may play a role in that," said Dominic Sykes, respiratory physician and Academic Clinical Fellow at the University of Hull. "We need further research into the role of serum biomarkers to be able to predict the long-term prognosis in patients who had Covid-19 infection," he added.