3 ms·

That might make a case for replacing the name but not eliminating it. Eliminating it would be akin to removing the name "stomach cancer" because other cells can

by graeme 3y ago

That might make a case for replacing the name but not eliminating it. Eliminating it would be akin to removing the name "stomach cancer" because other cells can also become cancerous. You need a name for things. And long flu might have different etiology than long covid despite similar symptoms, so it doesn't make sense to lump them together as "long virus".

SammyStacks 3y ago
I think replacing it is the way to go. It's important to differentiate between the acute symptoms of COVID and the chronic, persistent long-term symptoms, even if they both emanate from the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 virus on the body. It will be helpful for research, treatment, and the general understanding of physicians, mental health practitioners in the general public. I think there's precedent for such a decision in how concussions are generally viewed. An individual can be diagnosed with a concussion, which has common, acute symptoms. If the acute symptoms last longer than is typical for a concussion of a given severity, the individual could be diagnosed with persistent post-concussive symptoms (a.k.a. post-concussion syndrome). Of course brain injuries are different than viral infections, and we still have a ton to learn about brain injuries, but it's the idea of clearly differentiating between the acute effects and the chronic, persistent long-term effects. To be clear, I'm not trying to relate COVID with concussions beyond the medical nomenclature, but I think the nomenclature is effective in making the distinction to which I'm referring. It's not perfect, but we'll never have perfection in research. Edit: It's unclear if the paragraph breaks are displaying properly, so I apologize if it appears as a wall of text.
- graeme 3y ago
  >post-concussion syndrome Isn't that akin to "long covid"? No one mistakes post-concussion syndrome for a concussion, and no one mistakes long covid for an acute infection. We do have a formal name for long covid: PASC (Post-Acute-Sequaelae of Covid) It won't catch on a regular name because it's unpronounceable, but it there for the scientific literature and those who wish to speak formally. I'm open to there being a better way, but ultimately you need something people can refer to, as it is a common phenomenon.

by graeme 3y ago

SammyStacks 3y ago

I think replacing it is the way to go. It's important to differentiate between the acute symptoms of COVID and the chronic, persistent long-term symptoms, even if they both emanate from the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 virus on the body. It will be helpful for research, treatment, and the general understanding of physicians, mental health practitioners in the general public. I think there's precedent for such a decision in how concussions are generally viewed. An individual can be diagnosed with a concussion, which has common, acute symptoms. If the acute symptoms last longer than is typical for a concussion of a given severity, the individual could be diagnosed with persistent post-concussive symptoms (a.k.a. post-concussion syndrome). Of course brain injuries are different than viral infections, and we still have a ton to learn about brain injuries, but it's the idea of clearly differentiating between the acute effects and the chronic, persistent long-term effects. To be clear, I'm not trying to relate COVID with concussions beyond the medical nomenclature, but I think the nomenclature is effective in making the distinction to which I'm referring. It's not perfect, but we'll never have perfection in research. Edit: It's unclear if the paragraph breaks are displaying properly, so I apologize if it appears as a wall of text.

graeme 3y ago
>post-concussion syndrome Isn't that akin to "long covid"? No one mistakes post-concussion syndrome for a concussion, and no one mistakes long covid for an acute infection. We do have a formal name for long covid: PASC (Post-Acute-Sequaelae of Covid) It won't catch on a regular name because it's unpronounceable, but it there for the scientific literature and those who wish to speak formally. I'm open to there being a better way, but ultimately you need something people can refer to, as it is a common phenomenon.